Grade34newsletternovember

Grade 3 and 4 Newsletter November, 2013

PYP News!

UNIT 1: How the World Works Central Idea: Materials behave in different ways, which determine how people use them.

Lines of Inquiry ● the behaviour of materials ● the changing properties of materials ● the manipulation and application of materials for new purposes The key concepts to be emphasized in this unit are: ● Function ­ How do materials behave? ● Change ­ How do we change materials to fit our needs? ● Causation ­ Why do materials behave in a certain way?

LANGUAGES: Developing critical thinking skills Lifelong learning has long been a part of the IB PYP. As educators we encourage each of our students to develop critical thinking skills, and question what they want to learn, as opposed to what the teacher wants them to learn. Some children find thinking critically about their own learning a challenge, but if at home, and school, we follow some simple steps to help us assist with developing and refining these skills, students will be able to think critically about their own learning and as a result feel more successful in their own learning. ● Stop and ask yourself, what do I really think? ● Ask someone else for their idea and listen to it ● Understand what it is you need to do ● Think again of alternatives, think of positives, negatives, feelings and the bigger picture. ● Change your mind ● Finally, know yourself and be confident in what you believe If you would like some literature to support this, please do not hesitate to ask me.

Miss Lisa Hughes Grade 5 teacher and PYP Coordinator

THE ARTS In this unit Grade 3 & 4 will learn about sound and

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Procedural Writing and The Writing Process Components of Procedural Writing ● Title ­ Tells what is being explained. ● Goal ­ Tells what the procedure aims to produce. ● Needs ­ Describes or lists what is needed to complete the procedure. ● Steps ­ Describes step­by­step how to complete the procedure. ● Check ­ How to check if the procedure worked.

EAL Students have been exploring the language associated with changing materials by way of labelling materials in the EAL classroom, describing materials and experimenting with various materials.

For the writing task, procedural writing, students have been following and writing procedures about how to make paper cups, paper aeroplanes, fruity popsicles, popcorn and books.

Ms Sue, Ms Linda, Mr Michael

MATHS: The focus for Maths are: ● ● ● ●

Estimates, measures and compares objects using standard units of measurement Selects appropriate tools and units of measurement Uses standard units of measurement to solve problems in real­life situations Models numbers to thousands or beyond using the base 10 place value system

Key Dates November 1st (Friday): Grade 3 assembly November 15th (Friday): International Day November 18th (Monday): Early Finish, 11.40am, Three Way Conferences November 25th (Monday): Regular finish, Three Way Conferences Week starting December 9th: Book week Dec 12th (Thursday): Book week assembly, followed by Bookwork book sale

timbre. The students will inquire into different ways of using sound. As they travel through this unit, the students will hear many different kinds of music and discover that people from different countries and regions have special ways of using sound to express themselves. The students will learn about the sound of a Western­style symphony orchestra, a jazz­style brass band, the Korean kayagum, the Japanese koto and a variety of instruments from Ghana.

PSPE Quarter 2 sees students learning about Invasion Games. They have been introduced to the concept of attack and defence through simple invasion games like “Capture the Flag” and will further develop their understanding of what invasion games are and how to be successful when performing them as a team. Football, Basketball and Touch Rugby are the main invasion game focus. Students will look at how to structure and organise their teams for these sports.

VIETNAMESE Students learn about vocabulary of materials (vải, len, giấy,..)and ways of using them. Students design their products with certain materials.

Student Reflections We unpacked our central idea and used easier words to understand it better. We used our own ideas, dictionaries, thesauruses and computers.

Keona We made oobleck in class. When you hold it in your fist, it becomes solid. When you open your hand it becomes liquid. Libby & Rory I learned that the unit ‘Body Systems’ is not as easy as it seems to be. It was quite complicated.

Stella My other favorite activity was when I made the lungs. I enjoyed making it. I could understand easier how the lungs work. Do Yeon

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December 13th (Friday): Last day of semester, school finishes at 11am.

Mr Warren’s comment: As you can see on the Key Dates above, we have Three Way Conferences coming up towards the end of November. This is an opportunity for you, your child and the teacher to meet together to discuss progress and for you to set goals for your child for this school year. It is also an opportunity for you to visit the classroom and see evidence of the learning that is taking place in classes.

I would like to congratulate Ms Carla Holmes who recently attended training to be a PYP Workshop Leader. This training took a whole week of intensive learning situations, and Carla has her first workshop coming up at the end of November.

I would like to remind parents that you are welcome to visit the school at any time. We have elementary assemblies most Friday mornings at 8am and all parents are welcome to these.

Hanoi International School enables all students to realise their full potential in a caring and positive learning environment. Through our broad and balanced international curriculum, we endeavour to develop responsible, globally conscious citizens. We strive to develop the whole child as a lifelong learner with a strong sense of self worth.

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