ISB NEWSLETTER OCTOBER 2012
H E A LT H A N D F I T N E S S WEEK PA G E 1 2
YEAR 8 TRIP
ELC PIPERA
PA G E 1 0
PA G E 3
ISB Parents and Toddlers group-A new initiative run by parents What is it? For adults it’s a friendly place to meet other parents with young children. For babies and toddlers it’s a social group too! There will be opportunities to take part in a range of indoor craft based activities, rhymes and action songs and outdoor play (weather permitting) on the Early Year’s playground. Who can go? Open to all children aged 0 to 3 years old. (You do not have to have a child already in attendance at the school- its open to everyone!) Parents /carers must be present at all times during the session. When and where? At ISB Pantelimon campus every Wednesday morning from 9-11 am. (Soseau Gara Catelu, Nr. 1R, Sector 3.- This road is serviced by the RATB bus 246, the stop is M-tii Mehedinti) The activities will begin on the playground at the front entrance. Pushchairs and prams may be left inside the doorway nearest here. There is a parents room with comfy sofas which we will make use of later in the morning for the indoor activities. What will I need to bring? Snacks and drinks for your child and changing items if needed. How much will it cost? Nothing! What do I need to do now? Bring your baby along and have some fun. We hope to meet you soon! This group will be starting Wednesday 31st October 2012.
For more information please contact Vikki Peall (vhawkes@yahoo.co.uk)
Nursery News
“Now Nature hangs her mantle green on every blooming tree, and spreads her sheets o’ daisies white out o’er the grassy lea.” Nursery A news – Miss Monica
The first half of the 1st term for Nursery A Class, meant that a new journey had begun, especially for the little ones. Their first experience with school was filled with emotions, with lot of laughter and the excitement was seen on their faces. We started to adapt to the daily routine, to the Golden Rules that school has, as well as making new friends. We have concentrated our attention on learning topics as “Me and my School”, “Parts of the Body”, ”My family members” as well as on “People who help us”. In Numeracy we’ve learned about numbers, counted up to ten and played some games based on counting. Making collages, painting, learning to count, dancing and singing were activitities that children most enjoyed. We were delighted to spend time with parents at the Barbeque party organised by the school. What else can be nicer than spending this time playing with friends, being involved in learning while having a lot of fun together?
Nursery B news – Miss Roukie
Where to begin...? It was only yesterday that we all met each other on that first day of school in September with many tears. It seems that the time has flown so far and here we are at the end of the first half term! Since than it has certainly been a busy time as we’ve discovered “Ourselves”, “Families” and “People Who Help Us” and enjoyed a fun filled International Week and found out about different world celebrations.Nursery B has also started the year by learning about Our Golden Rules, the rules at Circle Time, in the bathroom, cafeteria and outside, on the Playground. We talked about sharing and being polite and to get along with others. We are looking forward to upcoming events and wish you all a relaxing enjoyable holiday!
Reception & Year1 News
Reception
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e left school in summer for a big and promising holiday and our last words were only “goodbye, goodbye see you my friends”... Lots of emotions and butterflies past through our stomachs and hearts at that time...we didn’t know if the butterflies or our friends would come back for another adventurous year but here they are, here we are together! Teachers and students, we all had our butterflies back in our stomachs, the joy back in our hearts on the very first day of school. Smiles and hope, friendships and good thoughts, this is the recipe for a fantastic year together. We all enjoyed the beginning of our adventure, got used to the rules we
Year1
Welcome back to the Autumn Term, Year 1 (Pipera) have had an exciting first half of the autumn term. They have quickly become familiar with their new classroom and are settling into work and daily routines. The children have participated in lots of exciting activities in which they have tackled to the best of their abilities. Year 1 had their first trip of the academic year to Titan Park during our health & fitness week in which they were able to share healthy snacks and play with thier fellow students from the Pantelimon campus. In the coming weeks before the Winter holidays, we will be working hard to develop reading and writing skills, and we will be continuing with daily phonics sessions to support this. Have a lovely half-term !!
have in school and learned new things. One of them is Autumn, this extraordinary season which welcomed us every day since we started school. We went to meet it at the park and it prepared lots of surprises for us. We found a colourful carpet on the ground which was very comfy because we could sit down on it and Autumn, this third daughter of Father Year filled our pockets with acorns and chestnuts. We tried to feed a squirrel with them but it ran away. We had a very good time on our first trip and we are looking forward to out second one. Enjoy our photos! Aren’t we great?
Nursery News
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he children in Nursery have settled well into their new school routines and are very active and busy little workers. The topic we are discussing this half term is All About Me. We have learnt the names of the different face and body parts we have, we have talked about how we feel, and we have looked at when we were babies and how we have changed and we talked about what families are.
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he children have actively participated in many and varied learning experiences based on this topic, including lots of songs. As we finish off the first half term the teachers wish to thank all the parents for their support and appreciation, especially during the first two weeks of school and we especially thank you for the photos you brought in of your family. We hope all families have a restful week away from the daily school routine.
Reception News
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he Reception students have made a fabulous start to the year. Many have already come with a good knowledge of English, which is fantastic. We would really like to thank those parents who are encouraging their children to use English at home as well as at school, it makes a huge difference to your child’s learning. The students have enjoyed working with numbers,
singing songs, painting and colouring, reading books and playing with their new friends. They have settled quickly into their new routine and are beginning to be more aware of the students around them. We have been practising how to be a good friend to others, by sharing, taking turns and using manners and the students have already improved. Well done Reception!
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Year 1 News
n Thursday 29th September all year 1 students went on a trip to Titan Park. We were celebrating ‘Health & Fitness Week’ by having a healthy food picnic and a long play in the park with our friends. We met the year 1 children from Pipera campus and we played on the play equipment as well as running on the grass and playing football. Guess who else came to the park? Lots of mums!! We were so lucky that many mums and aunties were able to join us and bring some yummy food to share. It was great to see so many people there and we thank you for taking the time to join us.
Year 2 News Year 2 have had a fantastic start to the academic year. All the children have had a calm and settled first month and they have been busy learning the rules and routines that are so important for effective learning. What have we been learning? Well, to mention just a few things….. We have been reading (and writing!) information and have learnt lots about our bodies and the bodies of who told us all about germs and how sleeping a lot is good for you. The teachers in year two took us outside and did exercises with us. We put all our Health and Fitness information together to make our own information book, complete with a contents and glossary. We hope that you will enjoy looking through it at home.
other animals. We practiced drawing faces and produced our own gorgeous portraits. We are now very good at naming and describing Mini-Beasts because we made our own mini-beasts out of junk materials and papier-mache (which was a bit messy but lots of fun!). During Health and Fitness Week we drank lots of fresh juice, ate yummy foods and learnt why eating a variety is important. We had a visit from the nurse
Year 3 News
As part of Year 3’s Airports Topic the whole year group made a visit to the Otopeni Airport. The children were very excited as we had been promised a visit to an aeroplane. On arrival we had to prepare for the Security Procedures, by emptying our pockets of any liquids and metals as we went through the body scanning machines. Then we got to put on orange visitor jackets, which made us look like very important people who worked at the airport! A trip on an airport bus followed around the apron, driving past various machines and equipment with our guide explaining what each one was used for; Miss Guzel helpfully translated. Whilst looking at the logos of the planes, spotting the difference between a passenger jet and a cargo plane, we also raced a plane taking off. Luckily we were not on the runway, but we were going alongside the planes route on the apron. The plane soon outran us and took off, where to we did not know, but we wished the pilot a safe flight. Then the highlight of the trip for everyone, was being allowed to sit in the cockpit of a jumbo jet! Mr Fulton was quite keen to test his flying skills, but the pilot had not left the key behind. After sitting in the pilot’s seat though, many children decided they would not complain about leg room in economy again, as the pilot has to climb into his seat and there is no space around him for stretching his legs.
Year 3 Health an Fitness News D
uring Health and Fitness Week Year 3 were making fruit salads; a delicious healthy snack. The children brought in different kinds of fruits. Following the teacher’s instructions the children learnt how to cut up fruits into small pieces and mix then in a bowl, thinking about size and colour for preparation. They also learnt how to safely use plastic knives and work on chopping boards. When the salad was ready they listened to fruity songs and ate their fruit salads. What a delicious lesson!
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he Year 3 children were also using the extra energy from their fruit salads when they visited Herastrau Park to be active. They took part in team relays, ball games and playing in the massive playground. With the weather being so hot, they burnt off even more energy, but importantly drunk their water to keep hydrated.
“Education City”
This year ISB decided to continue using Education City platform in Primary School. But, what is Education City? Well, this is a platform that transforms teaching and learning in a friendly and fun activity for both pupils and teachers. It has a huge educational activities data base that combine games with learning in a very attractive mode. The platform can be used from school, but also from home. Each ISB pupil from Primary has an account on the site (a username and a password) and they are using it to do the homework allocated by the class teacher. Even if they do not have something to write for homework, they might have a “digital homework”, so do not forget to check www.educationcity.com using your own account. If this is the first time you access it, these are the steps you have to follow: 1. Plug the speakers or the headphones and turn them on. 2. Use your browser to open the address: www.educationcity.com . Chose Login (see the picture1)
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Insert your username, password and then chose for the Region – International
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In the right down corner you have “Homework”. Click on that button
5. Your homework activities will be displayed, grouped by subjects (Numeracy, Literacy, Phonics etc ). 6. Now you can start the activities! Each time when you want to go back you have to press on the right up corner on this button , and if you want to go to the first screen press Home button . If you have any problems with your account you can send an email to monica.tele@isb.ro . Good luck and enjoy your Education City activities! Monica Țele I.C.T. Teacher
“Year 4 News” A
ll Year 4 classes have fully immersed themselves into this terms class work, and all the children have settled in very well into their new classes. The work we have in our books and on the walls reflects the high quality of teaching and learning that are on offer for the children at the school. As well as working hard in the classroom we have also given the children a rounded education by having themed weeks, such as ‘Health and Fitness Week’, to ensure the children grow enlightened in every way possible. his half term Year 4 has been to Heretsrau Park as part of the school’s Health and Fitness Week. We took some outdoor PE equipment and the children enjoyed playing for the morning outside. For lunch we had a healthy snack, and when we returned to school we continued our outdoor exercise with roller blading that was organised by Miss Laura, the PE teacher. Year 4 also designed a healthy lunch box as part of Health and Fitness week. e will be enjoying International Week this week at school, and each of the Year 4 children will be visiting the other Year 3 and 4 classes to experience something new about another culture from around our world. We are looking forward to the parade of children in different costumes that will represent the world in which we live, and of course the International food that will be prepared by parents and friends of the school later this week.
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Year 5 News
n year 5 this term we have been getting very creative and making 3D sculptures out of wire. We started by sketching our ideas onto a design sheet. The theme for our sculptures was ‘sports people’ to link with our topic of ‘Fit for life’. After choosing our favorite design we set about making them. We used one piece of wire for the head, one for the torso and one each for the arms and legs. After this we used newspaper to pad out the body and to give our figures a 3D shape. Then things got messy! We used plaster of Paris cut into thin strips to cover the entire body. After the plaster of Paris set and became hard we then painted our sculptures. The finished sculptures looked great and they were all very individual. The pupils learnt many new skills during this project and also had the opportunity to use different tools and materials.
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ear 6 residential trip to Predeal! October 1st-4th. As we are studying rivers in topic,we carried out some field studies on our trip. Children looked at the rate of flow of the river and carried out experiments to filter the water to make it cleaner. rip to Bran Castle and Rasnov FortressBoat race down the river!Last day in Park Aventura. Developing balancing skills and overcoming the fear of heights to complete the course.
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Year 6 News
POTIGRAFU PICNIC YEAR 7 We set off on our journey at 16:00 pm on Saturday afternoon. We went to potigrafu with 32 students (20 boys 12 girls) including 8 teachers. At first as soon as we arrived we started our football tournament with boys, in the meantime girls played different games. We finished the tournament in two hours then we started to have our dinner. After that we made an enormous camp fire, students fascinated with that maybe some of them have never seen anything like that in their life before it was awesome. Next was the movie we watched a fantastic movie and went to bed. Next day we got at 8:30 am in the morning and had our breakfast at 9 am. We went on trekking in the wood for an hour then we played target shooting with paintball. After that we had wonderful BBQ for our lunch. Then we watched movie and played some games (x box, twister and some other funny games) etc. Finally we headed back to school after having wonderful time altogether at 16:00pm.
Year 8 Potigrafu Night
Year 8 had an amazing time during the trip to Potigrafu. The minute we stepped out of the bus we started to explore the new surroundings and had time to accommodate into our rooms. A short while after, the sport activities and tournaments started. Of course all the boys raced towards the football pitch and basketball court, eager to start their games, whilst the girls, and Mr. Ahmet, played a thrilling game of volleyball. That night we were able watch an interesting movie that most of us enjoyed. The next day everyone had one thing on their mind: paintball. Each of us was dressed and geared, ready for combat and ready to beat our enemy team. Being in the paintball battle was a unique and unforgettable experience for each one. Soon after the paintball match, out trip came to an end. We were loaded back onto the buses and carried back, only thinking of what the next trip will await. Anghel Ana Maria, student from 8A
Trip To to Park Aventura
ISB set a trip to Park Aventura ,Ploiesti for Year 9 and Year 10 students. The park was a quite peaceful place in nature. Students participated many activities there. Firstly they climbed the trees and compete with each other to reach the higher stage. After they finished their stages, they went to the Paintball area. They played `Capture the Flag` with the groups and it was a very good activity to improve their teamwork skills. They were all moving together , helping and protecting each other to win. After the game they drove atvs there. We couldn’t answer how was the fastest :) After spending a little bit more time with the toys in the park, we moved to Camping Potigrafu. We ate our lunch (barbeque) there and played football and volleyball there. It was enjoyable for the students to play against their teachers. After the sport activities we headed to ISB. On the way back it was excellent to see all the students have smile in their face.
Health and Fitness Week
All students had to design their own Health & Fitness posters and they had to learn about keeping active and eating healthy. In Primary, students and teachers took part in many activities such as: interclass-football & basketball competitions, trips, parachute games, races in the playground organised by ISB’s house captains and prefects. To sum it up on Friday, Golden Time, the week ended with a very enjoyable activity – ROLLERBLADING.
after the match and parents from both sides were very supportive during the matches. It was a good experience for the players to get used to their new friends and play as a group. Our students were hospitable and
both sides were so gentle to each other.At the end of the match all the players from both teams were given a diploma.It was a great way of celebrating the Health & Fitness Week! PTA had an active role during the week preparing fresh juices and milk shakes for the students during breaks. We would like to thank PE Department, parents, In Secondary, the high light of the week was the In- teachers, captains and prefects for making this event terclass Competition for Key Stage 4&5 with very another ISB’s success! passionable football matches and extremely big supporters groups. During the English lessons, Mrs.Susan shared with her students the poem called “ Health is Wealth” and in Spanish lessons, there were many discussions about having a modern healthy lifestyle, health problems in Spain and the global health issues. ISB U-10 and U-12 Football teams has played friendly matches against Brithish School of Bucharest during Health & Fitness Week. On 3rd September U-12 Football Team has lost the game, 2-1 but on 5th September U-10 Football Team has won the game, 6-3. In both matches players saluted each other before and
EXTRA CURRICULUM ACTIVITIES
The 1st club session had an excellent start this year. An impressive number of 480 students is attending the 66 planned activities after school time, from 3.15 to 4.15, not only on school premises but in private clubs as well. The activities are designated for students from Early Years to year 13 and for parents as well. The English, Spanish and Romanian Language clubs sparkle the interest of parents, but Zumba classes are very popular as well.Mind Games Mind Games Club aims to give our students a brain workout by playing fun games that sharpen their mind. We offer board mind games which will help children develop strategies which they will be able to apply in real life as well. Children are encouraged to think smart and guess the opponent’s next move. The games can be played in 2 or more players and will help children to also develop their social skills. ISB Cheerleaders The ISB Cheerleaders Club started this year with a really passionate team of girls, anxious to support the ISB football and basketball teams in their competitions. We also have a valuable new staff member, too - Miss Adriana, the PE teacher joined the club and she has some great choreography ideas. At the Cheerleaders Club, we learn how to synchronize our body moves on the latest rhythms. With such a powerful supporting team, there is no way the ISB will lose a match in any sports competition! U14 Football ISB hosted a friendly football match against BSB. It was a friendly atmosphere and a good chance of training for ISB players. Beyond that, the score was 11-1 for ISB. Our aim will be to continue this success throughout the year. Dance is the root of all joy! This year, some lovely girls from Reception and Key Stage 1 joined the Dancing Butterflies club. They learn ballet dancing and practice delicate moves on the beautiful sound of the piano. At the end of this club session they are preparing a little show for the parents, teachers and the other children. They are already really anxious for the show and they hope the audience will appreciate it.
Two days full of excitement in Istanbul
It was the Turkey-Romania football match from the 2014 Football World Championship Qualifiers that occasioned an unforgettable trip to Istanbul, organized by the school for parents and students of ISB, between the 12-13 of October 2012. The main attraction of the trip was of course the match played by the two teams in the legendary atmosphere created by the supporters on the Sukur Saracoglu stadium, where we saw the Romanian team making an outstanding game. But equally exciting were the two days of sightseeing, having Mr. Murat as an experienced guide to the main tourist attractions of the city: the Hagia Sofya, the Sultan Ahmet Mosque, the Basilica Cistern, the cruise on the Bosfor, the Sapphire skyscraper in Levent, the Grand Bazar, Taksim and Galata. Another special local attraction which we couldn’t miss was the dinner with 30 traditional dishes! It was an intense experience and we look forward to the next occasion to be a team of great supporters! Tzvetan Florov
InCAS - A computer - adaptive assesment This year at ISB we will be trialing the use of a computer-adaptive assessment tool that can be used to inform personalised learning. Computer-adaptive assessments are still a fairly new concept and they have numerous benefits over traditional pencil and paper assessments. This computer based assessment, called InCAS will assess the children in key stage 1 and key stage 2, in the subjects of Maths, Literacy, developed ability and attitudes. Using InCAS, teachers will be provided with a wealth of information. It will highlight pupils’ strengths and weaknesses so that teachers can determine what pupils know and can do, which can inform teacher planning and target setting. It provides age-related scores and diagnostic information to facilitate personalised learning.
How do the assessments work?
The assessments have been created so that they can be administered to a whole class at once and have a childfriendly multimedia interface (see example below) that guides them through the assessment process. The computer-adaptive nature of the InCAS assessments means that the questions are tailored to the individual pupil (so that the assessment is not too difficult or too easy) and they get a personalized assessment – more suited to them. As a result, it is a more enjoyable and engaging experience. It also leads to more reliable assessments, with more detailed feedback. At the end of the assessment the data is uploaded to CEM (The Centre for Evaluation and Monitoring at Durham University, UK) which is then automatically processed and results are generated and published on your school’s dedicated InCAS+ secure site.
What is tested in InCAS?
InCAS has a modular design so that you can choose which parts of the assessment are appropriate for your circumstances. Six modules are available in total; Reading, General Maths, Developed Ability, Mental Arithmetic, Spelling and Attitudes. Each module is adaptive and pupils will see items appropriate for their age and ability. Within each module the assessment is broken down further.
How long do the assessments take?
The timings for the modules of the assessment are shown below. • Reading (20 – 25 minutes) • General Maths (20 – 25 minutes) • Developed Ability (20 – 25 minutes) • Spelling (15 – 20 minutes) • Mental Arithmetic (15 – 20 minutes) • Attitudes (5 – 10 minutes)
information about InCAS Feedback
The standard feedback provides age equivalent scores for all pupils in the school who have sat the InCAS Assessments.These scores allow teachers to create a profile for individual pupils, individual classes and the whole school. Pupil scores allow direct comparison of Reading, Spelling, Mathematics and Mental Arithmetic abilities in relation to Developed Ability (Vocabulary and Non-Verbal Ability) and Attitudes.
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Upcoming Events 15 Oct
Int’l Week (15-19 October)
18 Oct
International Fair
22 Oct
Holiday (22-26 October)
07 Nov
Parents’ Evening (Key Stage 2 & 3)
08 Nov
Parents’ Evening (Key Stage 1, 4 & 5)
19-23 Nov
Book Week (19-23 November)
30 Nov
No School (Sf.Andrei Holiday)
21 Dec
Last Day of Term
24 Dec - 8 Jan
Holiday (24 Dec-8 Jan)
The International School of Bucharest Sos Gara Catelu, Nr.1R Sector 3 032991Bucharest, Romania
Tel:+4 (0) 21 306 9530 Fax: +4 (0) 21 306 9534 www.isb.ro