Newsletter 1st Term 2016-2017

HSPR - A BEACON OF LIGHT FOR THE NEXT GENERATION TO SECURE A PROGRESSIVE FUTURE.

Beaconhouse School System Harley Street Branch Rawalpindi Newsletter

Volume 1, Issue 1

Exotic Series of Events:  Drama Festival: Celebrating Pakistan Day  Annual Sports Gala  Open Day  Middle School Trip  Mathematics Quiz  Mushaera & Kahani Goee

Inside this issue: Independence Day

2

Paying Tribute to the Prophet (PBUH)

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Celebrating Beaconhouse’s Birthday

4

Kindergarten’s Graduation Ceremony

5

Annual Investiture 9 Ceremony Global Dignity Day

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Educational Trips

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January 2017

From the Head’s Desk "Childhood is the most beautiful of all life's seasons" – Anonymous Dear Parents, It is a pleasure to welcome you all back from the rejuvenating annual winter break for the start of a wonderful new year, as we look forward to the next term with renewed vigour and eager anticipation.

I sincerely hope you are all taking due precautions for your health and well-being to brace yourselves for the winter season which only promises to become colder with every passing day.

It feels like only yesterday that we had watched the children begin the school year with their traditional exuberance and enthusiasm.

The first term proved to be a very eventful and productive semester, most notably for the inauguration of the Beaconhouse School System Adiala Branch - a project that came to its fruition after many months of anticipation and hard work. I am indebted to our leadership for their encouragement and guidance; for supporting me and my staff wholeheartedly throughout the endeavour and for making the wonderful commencement possible, which

was celebrated with great aplomb by all of us together at the Adiala Open Day. The school aims to provide convenience to parents living in the nearby residential areas for easy access, keeping in mind the growing population and traffic concerns of the city. The school grade levels will increase in the next session, starting from PreNursery up to Class 5.

I am pleased to write to you regarding the children's progress last term in cocurricular as well as academic activities where our students achieved a 100% result as a due reward for their efforts. The outgoing seniors of class VIII have set the pace for this accomplishment with a gratifying improvement in their academic result.

Additionally, in keeping with our curriculum policy of experiential learning, our students have once again made us proud with their participation and accomplishments in a variety of art and international music competitions; science projects and English and mathematics evaluations.

It was most heartening to see the imaginative and patriotic morning assemblies on a number of occasions of national importance, such as Independence Day, Defence

Day and Allama Iqbal Day. We also witnessed their efforts in pursuing timeless character building activities through PSHE assemblies on charity, honesty, work-life balance and the responsible use of social media.

The update of main events and happenings are highlighted in this issue.

As always, I am privileged to extend my gratitude to you, the parents, for continuing to provide your consistent support to the school and staff in every aspect of the children's educational and personal development, and look forward to the same mutual cooperation in the future.

We wish you a blessed new year.

Best Regards,

Sumairah Naveed HM, BSS-HSPR

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Orientation Sessions

Every year we arrange Orientation Sessions at the beginning of a school year. The purpose of these sessions is to familiarize parents with the courses, course materials and general patterns of study the students are going to undergo during their academic session.

Separate sessions for every level were arranged on separate days. The teachers and coordinators articulately delivered presentations to explain their plan and way of teaching. Parents were given an opportunity to have a question-answer session after the presentations.

Beaconhouse School System

Independence Day Every year Independence Day is celebrated all across Pakistan on 14th of August to commemorate the day when Pakistan achieved independence and was declared a sovereign nation in 1947. We have always laid emphasis upon

instilling the honourable emotions of love and patriotism for our motherland in our students. On 29th of August students of HSPR celebrated the Independence Day of Pakistan.

They enthusiastically delivered speeches and narrat-

ed inspiring quotations by the Quaid and Allama Iqbal. Students also dressed up and represented different cultures of Pakistan and sang national songs with great zeal and fervour.

on the theme of the day.

They performed a roleplay in Urdu about how our soldiers sacrificed their lives for their beloved country. A patriotic song was sung at the end of the assembly. The outstanding

feature about the event was that the young Beaconites created, produced and directed the entire assembly programme by themselves.

Defence Day Defence Day is celebrated as a national day to commemorate Pakistan's successful defence against India in the War of 1965. Students of class V Tulip presented a touching morning assembly

Volume 1, Issue 1

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Iqbal Day

Paying Tribute to the Prophet (PBUH) Students of HSPR organized Mahfil-e-Milad with the help of their respective Urdu teachers. A group of students very gracefully presented the teachings of our beloved Prophet (P.B.U.H).

They were beautifully dressed, with girls wearing headscarves and boys wearing shalwar kameez with prayer caps. They also recited melodious naats which

Students of class VI and VII arranged a special assembly on Iqbal Day to celebrate the birth of our great national hero, philosopher and poet and to commemorate his role in liberating the Muslims of the sub-continent.

Students spoke about the life and philosophy of Allama Iqbal. They shared excerpts from the famous works of Iqbal and also their views on his inspiring words. At the end, the whole school collectively paid tribute by singing “Iqbal Hai, Iqbal Hai, Iqbal Hamara”.

added beauty to the presentation and made the atmosphere a spiritual one.

Students shared the early life and Hadiths of our P r o p h e t (P.B.U.H) that helped students learn more about Islam.

PTM

Lecture on Importance of First 10 Days of Zilhajj Even for those not performing the pilgrimage or the Hajj, the first ten days of this month are considered very sacred and a time for increased reflection, seeking Allah's forgiveness, doing good and various other forms of worship.

A series of lectures were arranged about the significance of these days of the Islamic month of Zil Hajj.

Scholars were invited to deliver highly enlightening lectures which they had prepared keeping in mind the age group of their audience.

Students of classes 3 and 4, 5 and 6, and 7 and 8 attended separate sessions.

They got to learn about the Islamic history by listening to stories of Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S) and Hazrat Ismail (A.S). Children were

taught the significance of little deeds of kindness and how they are the foundation of greater goodness. Short role plays and activities were also performed to make it an intriguing experience.

A parent-teacher meeting was organized on Wednesday, October 26th 2016. The staff had a fruitful discussion on this occasion with the parents, regarding students’ performance.

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Plantation Activity

Planting and establishing trees is all about managing air and moisture in the soil. Supporting this statement the students of KGs of HSPR planned and conducted ‘The Plantation Activity’ on October 21st, 2016. The students participated very enthusiastically and learnt that planting trees contribute to our environment by providing oxygen, improving air quality, conserving water, preserving soil and supporting wildlife. The students planted trees in the garden area within the school premises.

They brought jam bottles, seeds and enjoyed this educational activity with their teachers’ support.

Beaconhouse School System

Eid Milan Party Celebrating all occasions to the fullest is a priority at Beaconhouse, to educate the children on sharing and spreading happiness. Therefore, an Eid Milan party was organized in which students, attired in their Eid dresses. Later, as a special surprise for the students, a magic show was arranged. The students cheered and clapped for the enthralling tricks and acts performed by the magician. Group photos, games, fun activities... overall it was a day filled with merriment! The main objective of this activity was to inculcate a sense of unity, sacrifice and sharing which is the essence and blessing of Eid.

Celebrating Beaconhouse’s Birthday Birthday of Beaconhouse was celebrated with a lot of enthusiasm. Campus was completely transformed into a colourful arena with balloons and buntings on November 4, 2016. The history of Beaconhouse was shared by SM Mrs. Zainab Hussain during the morning assembly. The students sang the birthday song to express their feelings and wished Beaconhouse well. Later in the day, the small children of Early years also joined in the celebrations. The whole school participated in the festivities and expressed their best wishes for the school. We com-

memorated the day with a cake-cutting ceremony. Students shared an acrostic poem to express their feelings. At the end of the day sweets were distributed among

children. All staff members and students enthusiastically participated in the singing of the birthday song. We are so proud to be a part of this wonderful family!

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Kindergarten Graduation Ceremony An important day in the lives of the graduates, this day marks the end of their kindergarten life and the start of the bright future that awaits them at Grade School. To keep them motivated for the years to come, a memorable Graduation Ceremony was arranged. Awards were given to the kindergarten

students with recognition and praise for each child individually. Everyone was applauded and appreciated according to their skills and competency. It was a beautifully organized ceremony - a proud moment for the parents to see their children in gowns and graduation caps indeed!

Celebrating Friendship Our little angels of Early Years along with their teachers celebrated friendship day. They exchanged handmade flowers to show their love and care for their friends. This day was celebrated so that our

students know the importance of friends in their lives and maintain a friendly relationship with their class fellows and teachers also.

Interview of a Crocodile

Students of all sections class 3, separately conducted an interview of a crocodile as part of their language activity. One student had to play the role of a crocodile and answer questions about crocodiles. The rest of the class prepared questions for asking him/ her. Through the activity, students were taught how interviewers can form questions to get the desired information from interviewees.

Handwriting Competition

Handwriting competition was held to enhance confidence in students’ handwriting by using Nelson handwriting script. It was a whole class activity and everyone participated enthusiastically from K.G till Class 2. Students were given a platform where they proved their handwriting skills and learning regarding letter formation.

It was a healthy and a fruitful competition.

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Beaconhouse School System

Primary Colour Day Colour day was celebrated in HSPR on October 1st, 2016. This day was celebrated to learn how colours influence our mood, productivity and behavior in our everyday lives. It is hard to imagine a world without colour. The students of KGs wore vibrant colours and enjoyed

various activities throughout the day as the teachers displayed the primary colour stalls (red, blue and yellow) consisting of amusing activities such as jelly making, food printing, puzzle and snake/ladder games, feeding the monster and creating yellow chicks using crafts.

Personal, Social, Health and Emotional Education PSHE is a new area of learning introduced in Beaconhouse with a moto to instill character building, effective team work, moral values and social ethics. In this regard, circle time and assemblies were conducted on weekly basis to emphasize personal, social, health, and emotional educational values. Starting from Early years to Middle School, students involved in sharing different topics including honesty, charity, dignity, healthy tips, cleanliness, moral values and many more. Different as-

pects of PSHE are highlighted and reflected through roleplays, skits and speeches in assemblies. With the help of these our students are able to communicate in front of audience and speak clearly and confidently.

Volume 1, Issue 1

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Highlights of Club Activities Term I 2016—17 Club Activities have been chosen to add colour and vivacity to school life as they impart important life-skills and make learning fun and memorable. Students have been given a very unique opportunity to unfurl their own hidden talents and tap the creative potential of the school – which is no meagre task. Extra-curricular activities are necessary to enable a healthy balance between the mind and the body, intellectual prowess and artistic abilities. The school offers a variety of Clubs to satisfy a myriad of interests, headed by the students themselves. We want to know – to find out – the actor, the poet, the MasterChef, the technologist, the whiz kid, the musician, the environmentalist and the athlete living inside our students.

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Bonfire and Movie Night

Middle School celebrated the new winter season with great enjoyment on “Bonfire Day”. The event was organized at the school premises in an outdoor setting to take full advantage of the beautiful weather. The staff and students both savored the festive atmosphere that was complemented by charming candlelight decorations and the romance of the bonfire itself. A photo booth was set up to capture the memories of the day with friends and colleagues.

The occasion also included a screening of the movie “The Jungle Book” which was followed by a scrumptious barbeque dinner which was enjoyed by the students and the teachers. The sizzling biryani spiced up the celebrations which was crowned by delicious ice cream.

Beaconhouse School System

Election Campaign Running for student council is one of the first ways students can get a firsthand lesson in leadership, voting, elections and politics. It is an excellent opportunity for learning and promoting leadership skills amongst the students. The nominated candidates were given 5 days for their election campaign. They, along with their supporters, enthusiastically dis-

played posters all over their school building. The candidates delivered their campaign speeches during morning assemblies, making their fellow students aware of their strengths and how they can support the working staff and administration in improving the school environment and discipline. On Election Day, children were full of zeal and excitement.

Hoping for their favourite candidate to win, they cast their votes. At the end of the day when suspense was at its peak, the elected representatives were finally revealed: Manahil Fazal and Rayyan Farooq, our highly capable and talented students were elected to be the Head Girl and Head Boy for the year 2016-17.

Winter’s Day Celebrations HSPR celebrated ‘Winter’s Day’ on Friday, 23rd December 2016.

Early years celebrated this day with full zest and fervour. The students were dressed in coloured

clothes. There were dry fruits, fruits, vegetables, winter clothing and hot drinks stalls which were very eye-catching and captivating. A puppet show was also organized

by one section of the KGs , which turned out to be the highlight of the day; highly entertaining and a great learning experience.

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Annual Investiture Ceremony The Investiture ceremony is one of the most important occasions of the school where the day signifies a milestone in the lives of the young leaders of our Student Council, who have now stepped on to a platform from where they will begin to walk with their own beacons of light and teach others what their noble mentors have taught them.

Last year we introduced Global Dignity Ambassadors and Student Councillors who represent the right of every student to be respected, as well as empowered to develop the confidence and reasoning skills to make positive life decisions.

Our Student Council for 2016-17 is as follows: Head Boy: Rayan Farooq Head Girl: Manahil Fazal Global Dignity Ambassador (Boys): Zikrullah Rehman Global Dignity Ambassador (Girls): Eman Ejaz Student Body Councillor (Boys): Daniyal Ahsan Student Body Councillor (Girls): Omaymah Hussain House Captains: Vice House Captains: Sir Syed Ahmed Khan House: Hammad Ali Shah Sir Syed Ahmed Khan House: Haroon Mehmood Allama Iqbal House: Hamza Saqib Allama Iqbal House: Momin Raja Quaid-e-Azam House: Hamza Mehmood Quaid-e-Azam House: Shariq Salman Fatima Jinnah House: Maha Mustensir Fatima Jinnah House: Hamza Khalid Club Committees: Presidents: Vice Presidents: English Literary Club: Murtaza Abbas English Literary Club : Filza Ghalib Urdu Literary Club: Jalisha Khalid Urdu Literary Club: Zainab Noor Math Club: Ali Shan Math Club: Umar Khalid Cheema Science Club: Ahmed Waseem Science Club: Rayan Ahmed Islamic Club: Adam Khan Islamic Club: Talbiya Khan Environmental Club: Omer Aziz Environmental Club: M Ali Zain ul Abideen Dramatic Club: Fahad Khan Dramatic Club: Rahma Eman Music Club: Sara Tanveer Music Club: Wania Fazal Aerobics Club: Zainab Zulfiqar Aerobics Club: Ishmal Burhan Arts and Crafts: Amaan Waheed Arts and Crafts Club: Syed Azan Ali Kazmi Sports Club : Sahil Malik Sports Club: Noman Khan Educational Technologies: Ahmed Haris Educational Technologies: Azlan Tanveer Cooking Club: Momina Khan Cooking Club: Zoya Ali Stitching Club: Raheyma Safdar Stitching Club: Eman Younus Prefects of Student Council: Class 8: Ahmed Mughal and Azaan Ali Class 7: Shiza Ali, Arooba Ali and Soha Noor Class 6: Momina Khalid, Fardeen Tahir, M. Ahmed and Abdul Muqeet Deputy Prefects of Student Council: Class 8: M. Yusuf, Umar Khan, Aitzaz Arshad & Saad Ahmed Class 7: M. Ibrahim, Usman Ahmed and Raja M. Saad Class 6: Zakariya Amjad, Ali Haider and Talha Niazi Class 5: Abdullah Faisal and Manaal Zahra Class 4: Aiza Hassan Class 3: Fatima Faisal Each member pledged to perform his or her duty with dedication and devotion which together stands for commitment, determination, courage, peace, justice, wisdom and scholarship.

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Beaconhouse School System

Global Dignity Day Global Dignity Day is an initiative to educate and inspire young people and help them to understand their self-worth and goals.

Defining dignity in their own words and sharing stories from their own lives gives students ownership of the concept.

The first step towards it was a discussion in the classroom, exploring the meaning of dignity and the reason of its celebration.

Like always we celebrated Global Dignity Day with enthusiasm to inspire our young souls and to instill positive values that will guide them as they grow into adults.

The whole school celebrated the day together with a special assembly, role play activities and a collective discussion on the topic. The little angels of nursery made cards to show care and love for their teachers and friends.

Students of grade 3 p res en ted ha ndmad e thankyou cards to the support staff. Art work depicting the theme of global

dignity was also displayed.

Students of class 1 and 2 shared their views about dignity on cut outs of leaves and pasted these on a beautiful dignity tree designed by their teachers.

Students wrote a letter to themselves stating what they want to achieve for themselves and others by focusing on dignity.

Later, Beaconites arranged a ‘GupShup’ with the support staff, and delicious ‘Halwapuri’ and ‘Channay’ were served. Middle school students decorated the wall with poems ,quotes and personal experiences related to dignity. A friendly match was also organized between the senior boys and the staff.

The aim of these activities is to make the concept of dignity tangible and understandable to each and every student, and to help them to learn to believe in action, and encourage them to take steps to boost dignity in their own lives.

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Early Years’ Open Days HSPR has been conducting Open Days for parents from Pre-nursery- Grade 2. The parents are invited to attend, observe and learn more about the teaching strategies and their child’s progress dur-

ing the lesson. During an open day prospective parents and pupils can visit the school during a working day. Every child has different strengths and weaknesses, and it's important that their school

Dental Checkup An esteemed dental surgeon, Dr. Shumaila was invited to make the children of grade 3 conscious about their oral hygiene and dental health.

First, Dr. Shumaila delivered an informative presentation emphasizing upon the importance of

provides the right environment for them to thrive in. We work closely with students, parents and prep school heads to get that right.

Annual Prize Distribution Ceremony oral hygiene and dental health. Students were demonstrated ways of taking care of their teeth using a teeth model. Later, every child got a dental check up and wrote down their thoughts about oral hygiene and pasted on the soft board.

The Annual Prize Distribution Ceremony 201516 for Classes I till VIII was postponed due to the disturbing security issues.

It has been celebrated with its due honour and prestige at start of the new session.

Mrs. Sumairah Naveed gave

away medals, trophies and certificates to all the deserving students. There was an aura of pride and motivation around. The students, along with their parents shone with pride after receiving their rewards.

Field Trip to Aviation Base

Educational Trips

Trip to Ayub Park and CSD—Early Years

A field trip to Army Aviation Base was arranged by HSPR for grades 3,4 and 5 students. It was a highly enriching experience with a purpose to contribute to the development of students into civilized young men and women who possess more knowledge about their national assets, have stronger critical-thinking skills, and exhibit increased historical empathy and pride. The students were given a guided tour of the base. They were particularly enthralled by the flying machines; getting to observe the interiors and exteriors closely, knowing about the equipment used for rescue missions, getting first hand information from the operating crew and most of all getting to sit inside the helicopters.

They also got to feel the action inside the control tower. Later on, the fire-fighting crew also put on a live display with their fireengines and other equipment.

After having light refreshments and getting their group photos taken, they were taken back to school premises. The students of HSPR were full of excitement and zeal, and would cherish their moments of pride for a long time!

We believe that trips play an important part in child's education. Educational Trips gives them an opportunity to learn from their own experiences and from the experience of others. Field trips give students educational experiences away from their regular school environment. Popular field trip sites include zoos, nature centers, community agencies such as fire stations and hospitals, government agencies, local businesses and science museums. Not only do field trips provide alternative educational opportunities for children, they can also benefit the community if they include some type of community service.

Field trips give children a welcome break in routine. Kids can look forward to and prepare for the field trip for several days or weeks. Then, they get to spend the day in a different learning environment and can complete a lesson on the topic covered after the trip is over.

Trip to Fauji Cereals—Grade I & II To enhance learning of the students grades I and II were taken for an educational trip to Fauji Cereals Rawalpindi. It is the pioneer commercial venture of Fauji Foundation. It is Pakistan’s most prestigious and biggest cereal processing unit, having the latest modernized machinery, highly hygienic environments for production of Halal Food Products. The Company enjoys over 80% of the market share in the category of Breakfast Cereals and Porridge Food Products. The students were introduced to the pre-processing, processing and fitting/packing of the products in the factory that increased their knowledge about the processing units in a factory. The students were provided fresh juices, breakfast cereals and porridge food products as refreshment. Free goodie bags containing Fauji cereal products were also given away to the students. Adding pleasure to this educational trip students were also taken to Ayub National Park, Rawalpindi where they shared and enjoyed their food and had fun time playing with friends.

Mrs. Zainab Hussain (SM)

Mrs. Sarah Tauqeer (SC)

Mrs. Shumaiza Rizwan (SC)