2015
www.isvietnam.org
Table of Contents Message from the Principal page 01 Message from Head of Elementary page 02 Pre-K Updates
page 03
K1 + Grade 4 Updates page 04 K2 Updates Grade 1 Updates
page 05 - 08 page 09 - 10
Grade 2 Updates Grade 3 Updates Grade 5 Updates
April is a short month at ISV, with two breaks resulting in only sixteen teaching days during the month. However, as always, the staff have manage to cram a lot of things into the time available. Highlights of April have been the Saturday Spring event on 18th April, the Grade 5 & 6 three-day trip to the Cuc Phuong National Park, PYP trips to Royal City and the Vietnam Ethnology Museum, the annual ISV Sports Day, and the creation of the Student Council. You will find photos and reports about most of these things on the school website and on the school’s Facebook page. Ms Patricia (Head of Elementary), also started her PYP workshops for parents with a meeting about how reading is taught at ISV, and a guide on how parents can help their child read at home. There will be future PYP workshops on various Fridays in the weeks ahead: keep checking your e-mails and the school website for details.
page 12 - 14
Also coming up in the month ahead, the second anniversary of ISV will be marked on Friday 22nd May, between 9:30m – noon. Invitations to this grand event will be with you very soon, but be sure to book the time in your diary.
page 15 - 17
And with that, I will hand over the newsletter to the staff and students: enjoy.
page 11
PYP Updates
page 18
PE Updates French Updates
Newsletter for April 2015, Principal
Bryan Manditsch Principal
page 18 page 19 - 20
Science & Maths Updates page 21 Music & Drama Updates page 22 Arts Updates
page 23 - 24
Vietnamese Updates page 25 - 26 ICT Updates Humanities Updates English Updates
page 27 page 28 page 29
Page 01
Message from Head of Elementary Time is quickly passing us as we head into the final six weeks of school. From an administrative perspective, the school has seen much development this term. One of these developments has been staff busy working on perfecting the ISV reporting systems. This month, you may have noticed this change. Teachers have sent unit reports regarding the unit of inquiry that your child’s class has just completed. This unit report acts as a form of progressive communication, to keep you aware of your child’s learning during the unit of inquiry, as well as your child’s next steps in learning, for the following unit of inquiry. If you have any questions regarding this additional reporting document, do not hesitate to contact me via email. Additionally, ISV has made much needed moves towards its first student council body. Students have been very excited about this, especially the grade four and five students. After a voting poll taken by grade one to five, we finally have three students from each of the above grades that will represent our elementary section and assist in developing our school further, as well as taking positive action outside our school. These elected students will join the three middle school councilors, that were placed in office last week. The team’s first student council meeting will be held in the first week back, after this week’s holiday.
Upcoming Events May May
22
Second Anniversary
May
29
Swimming Gala June
Jun
5 Jun
12
Coffee with the Principal Student Led Conferences (PYP) and Parent Teachers Conferences (MS)
Jun
Reading Workshop – How Parents Can Help Thank you to those parents that attended our ‘Reading Workshop’ this morning. It was lovely to have you part of the school day. We look forward to sharing the next ‘writing session' with you soon. Please see the details above for the next writing session. For those parents that were not able to attend the workshop, Ms. Trang has kindly sent the session information to your email addresses. If you were not at the workshop and wish to ask questions around the information explored, again, feel free to make contact and I shall endeavor to assist. Have a safe and relaxing week’s break with your family.
18
Last day of school
Patricia McLoughlin
Page 02
Pre-K Updates by Ms. Lakshmi
Pre-K News It was fun, fun and fun all the way when children made associations with the starting sound of ‘p’ by making penguins and other ‘p’ items. This activity also helped to reinforce shapes (oval, circle, triangle), as well as the concepts big, small and colour.
We completed our Unit of Inquiry on ‘Homes’ on 17th of April. It was a grand finale of sorts when we went on a Field trip to the Vietnam Ethnology museum with the K1 class. Children enjoyed themselves thoroughly as well as learned about the different homes in Vietnam.
April has been a fun month with Tata and Carla celebrating their birthdays!
We have already ‘tuned in’ to the next UoI – Materials. We shall take it further once the school reopens. Wish you all a wonderful spring break!
Page 03
K1 and Grade 4 Updates The Great Egg Hunt “We came to school, we put our bags in the locker and we played in the soft play area. Grade 4 came and visit (ed) us. And then we sit (sat) down on the floor and then Ms Michèle showed us the egg. And then we go (went) in the classroom for an egg hunt. We looked for the golden egg. Thu Han and Gia Han found it first. And then we get (got) some things to decorate the eggs. Then we put it to make it dry. And then we bring (brought) it home. We like (d) the golden egg and we like (d) to find the eggs again with Grade 4.” Told by Zoe and Phuong Binh (K1 Class) “It was hard finding the golden egg, but it was fun! We tried to look at every hiding place that we could think of, but we couldn’t find it. We found it on the top of a bowl! We felt very surprised and at the same time happy!” Told by Thu Han and Gia Han (Grade 4 and K1)
Page 04
K2 updates from Ms. Boriana
The coming of Spring saw the start of the new unit on K2 abour Public Spaces. The students looked at pictures and videos, they read books and went on excursions to develop an understanding of what a public space is and how does it function. Take a look at some of the action!
The students worked with a partner to create models of pocket parks inspired by books they read in the class.
Page 05
K2 updates from Ms. Boriana
The students in K2 applied their knowledge about parksanda lotof creativity into their models.
At the Botanical Gardens the students observed...
There are so many
things to draw! I wonder where shall I start?!
...and recordedtheir observationsabout the space, the people, and the way the space functions.
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K2 updates from Ms. Boriana
Ridingtheschool busprovides lots of opportunities to play.But wearing a seat belt is a must!
Hey, I have secured my hat and a water bottle! That's what I call safety!
We are learning how to staysafe on the bus...
... and while riding on the escalator.
Page 07
K2 updates from Ms. Boriana
We recorded our observations and checked out the kind of things people do in a privately owned public space.
This is definitely not as much fun as eating an ice cream in the mall!
On April 17th the studentsin K2 participated in the ISV's Sports Day. What great fun it was!
Page 08
Grade 1 updates from Ms. Sacha
Grade 1 updates from Ms. Sacha
Grade One has been inquiring into our central idea on “People play different roles in the community to which they belong”. We’ve been doing a case study on the ISV community. We went around the school and asked what people’s roles were. Some of the roles we came across were teachers, assistant teachers, the Head of Elementary, the principal, the nurse, security guards and cleaners. We’ve also been learning about the PYP key concepts. For function, we touched on how the ISV roles work. For responsibility, we looked at the tools, skills and attitudes that employees at ISV need to fulfill their role. And for connection, we started asking how people can help the students and each other at ISV.
In Math, we are learning about how money is one way that we can organize the way we buy and sell. Our learning outcomes include: • Counting with 1, 2, 5 and 10 cents • Using the appropriate coins to come up with a specific total • Finding the missing value of a coin Minh and Jaewan brought coins and bills from different countries to share with our class. Thank you for taking action! At home, you can practice the skills listed above in IXL.com – Math – Grade 1 – O.
In Language Arts, we are currently learning how to do interviews. We’ve crafted questions based on our key concepts. We now have the opportunity to use these questions to learn more about our ISV community. Some of the people we’ve interviewed are: the nurse, Miss Patricia and Mr. Bryan. These are all building blocks for a future informational report. Other language arts skills that we’ve been learning to help us write our informational report include: • Differentiating between a fact and opinion • Constructing sentences using a subject and predicate • Using capital letters appropriately • Spelling unit words At home, you can practice some of these skills by using IXL.com – Language Arts – Grade 2 – B and X.
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Grade 1 updates from Ms. Sacha
Grade 1 updates from Ms. Sacha We celebrated Sports Day on April 17! Here are some photos!
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Grade 2 Updates from Ms. Angela
Grade 2 Updates from Ms. Angela Dear Parents, It has been a busy fortnight in Grade 2. We finished our ‘Life cycles’ Unit of Inquiry last week. You should have also received a report about this unit. I hope you all enjoyed reading your child’s report and you found the information useful. I think the children were proud to take their seedlings home they had grown. I hope you enjoyed reading your child’s log book that provided details of your child’s thoughts related to growing their plant. The children also completed a reflective task about the Life cycles unit that has been placed in their portfolio.
In Maths, we are now investigating mapping and language of probability. Mapping relates well to the Landforms inquiry and we will look at concepts such as ‘North, South, West and East.’ ‘Language of probability’ relates to using terms, such as ‘impossible, possible, perhaps etc.’ We will look at situations that are ‘impossible’ ‘possible’ etc. to develop understandings of this.
As you are aware, we have begun work on our next Unit of Inquiry ‘Landforms.’ The children have completed a pre-assessment task that has been placed in their portfolio. The purpose of conducting per-assessments relates to assessing each child’s current level of knowledge related to a topic. At this point in time, the assessment indicates some children are developing their knowledge of classifications of landforms. Some of the children also had limited knowledge of the less common vocabulary, such as ‘valley’ and ‘peninsula.’ This is fine as one of the purposes of the unit, is for students to learn the vocabulary and develop their knowledge.
In Literacy, we have been investigating spelling patterns that involve blends, such as ‘ch,’ ‘sh,’ ‘br’ and ‘th.’ New spelling words that relate to our Landforms unit are to be introduced to students this week. The students also participated in a pre-spelling test of some Landform words. I will conduct a post-spelling test at the end of the unit to provide some data related to how each child has improved their spelling. I have also been conducting Guided Reading sessions with students on a regular basis. This involves students participating in ‘small group’ reading with me where they read a text that is appropriate for their reading level. I am in the process of organizing an excursion related to our Landforms unit. Regards, Angela
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Grade 3 updates from Ms. Selena
U.O.I./Language Arts Who we are
The grade 3 students are on their Finding Out and Sorting Out stages in UOI. They have been exploring the first Line of Inquiry by looking into their physical, emotional, and social characteristics. • To show their physical traits, students drew pictures of themselves and described various parts of their bodies. They used their skills in measurement to describe their height and weight, as well as the length of their arms, feet, neck, and so on. • To show their emotional traits, students noted details regarding some forms of emotions. They wrote down when they feel these emotions and what they do during those instances. One student, for instance, wrote that she feels sad when she watches sad shows or listens to sad songs. Another student wrote that when she is happy, she jumps up and down around the room. • To show their social traits, students reflected on how they act around different kinds of people, including their parents, friends, teachers, and strangers. One student wrote, “I am timid when I am with strangers. This is because I don’t know them very well and I don’t know if they are good or bad and they might hurt me very badly.” Another student wrote, “I am chatty when I am with my teachers. This is because I need to talk to my teachers so that they know what I am thinking.” • Students were able to use words that they have learned during Language Arts to describe their physical, emotional, and social traits. The students put together all the information about themselves on posters and later, presented these in front of their classmates.
U.O.I./Language Arts PRESENTING: The G3 Talent Show!
Last week, the students had opportunities to talk about their strengths through two activities: writing procedural pieces during Language Arts and performing their strengths in front of their classmates during UOI. Students engaged in performances that showed their talents in music, sports, and technology. Three students played different musical instruments, while one sang a song. Three other students showed strengths in physical activitiesskateboarding, in-line skating, and figure skating. One student showed his ability to transfer a Youtube video into an mp4 file and post it on a PowerPoint slide. Their procedural pieces helped the students present their strengths in detail. The third graders are such a talented bunch! Way to go, grade 3!
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Grade 3 updates from Ms. Selena
UOI:
How are we alike/different from each other? For the second Line of Inquiry, students compared and contrasted their physical, emotional, and social traits, as well as their strengths and weaknesses with their classmates’. They filled in graphic organisers that guided their thinking. Students realised that though they had many differences, they also had a lot of similarities with other people in their class.
Mathematics: Measuring Length
The students are learning to measure length using different kinds of measuring tools. They have started measuring inches and centimetres with rulers and tape measures. Students are now able to measure inches with increments of 1/2, 1/4, 1/8, 1/16, and 1/32. They can also express centimetres using centimetres alone or using centimetres and millimetres together. The third graders have been diligent and patient when measuring. They have learned that in order to measure accurately, one must be precise and must take his/her time. Soon, students will be measuring using non-traditional tools like hand and arm spans, or even everyday objects around them. This will teach them that measurements can also be estimated.
I.T. We have a new app! Recently in I.T., the third graders were introduced to an IPad application called “AURASMA”. The application enables them to put animations to pictures they have taken. The students delved right into making their own animations using their own pictures and pictures of their favourite things. We hope to continue using “AURASMA” with our future work in UOI, Math, and Language Arts. Thank you for teaching us how to use this cool application, Mr. Michael!
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Grade 3 updates from Ms. Selena
Seo Yeon about to jump at the standing jump station
Mr. Alex showing the students how to do a proper shot put throw
Jong Yun just finishing his shot put throw
Yein jumping at the standing jump station
Nene doing a shot put throw
Vu throwing a noodle
The third graders had a lot of fun doing the sports activities! Thank you to all the parents who came to support the students during Sports Day!
SPORTS DAY 2015 Friday, 17 April Page 14
Grade 5 Updates from Mr. Rob Unit Of Inquiry Grade 5’s new unit of inquiry is under the transdsciplinary theme of ‘How We Organise Ourselves’. The central idea was: Technology impacts on the world of work and leisure. And the lines of inquiry were: • • •
Technology in the home, workplace and leisure activities Circumstances that lead to the development of technology Impacts of technology
Grade 5’s last unit of inquiry involved the students investigating a number of biomes (small ecosystems) like deserts, coral reefs, forests and arctic tundra. To finish this unit of inquiry the students went on a ‘little’ trip to Cuc Phuong National Park for a 3 DAY CAMP. The students had a wonderful time hiking in the mud, seeing the turtles, monkeys, nocturnal carnivores and a snake. Some of the students joined me at 5.30am to listen to the monkeys and what an amazing sound it was. It really sounded like they were ‘singing’. Grade 5 also saw a 1000 years old tree, a cloud forest, a rainforest, a cave and the students enjoyed sitting around a camp fire on he second night. Here are a few more photos from Cuc Phuong National Park.
The students enjoying their ‘little’ walk through the rainforest.
Below: After a couple of hours walking they reached the 1000 year old tree.
Look Mums and Dads; the students did have to work while they were away.
HERE ARE THE CUTE AND CUDDLEY, BUT NOT SO FRIENDLY ANIMALS WE SAW.
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Grade 5 Updates from Mr. Rob
The campfire and the boys staring into ‌
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Grade 5 Updates from Mr. Rob
I really liked the campfire because it was fun and I go to sing with my friends. Minh Anh
When we walked through the rainforest our shoes kept getting stuck in the mud. Hoang
Camp was a fun learning experience for all students while being away from school.
The survival game was fun and we learnt how animals can be affect when there is an imbalance.
Felicity
Sun Jin
Camp quotes from the students
It was a great experience to be with my friends and away from my parents. Thien Cam
I really enjoyed crossing the creek and walking on the muddy rainforest trails. Jun
I really enjoyed camp because we were by ourselves (no parents) and we got to build up our skills and knowledge. Seung Bin
I enjoyed the camp because of the hikes in the jungle and the walk to the cave. Alex
In mathematics, grade 5 is developing strategies to solve word problems. They have been able to solve one-step problems and are now working on multi-step problems. Finally they will write their own problems for each other to solve. In Literacy, Grade 5 is looking at persuasive writing. To start with they are watching advertisements and determining the criteria for a successful advertisement.
Important Dates to remember: •
Once this has been done, they will work in small groups to create an advertisement for a classroom product. Finally they will be able to debate issues and try to persuade the audience to vote for their side.
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Quarter 4 starts on 4th May
PYP Updates from Ms. Sacha
If you would like to read more on how you can help your child develop thinking skills, you can read the full article on
April 22, 2015
ht t p :/ / w w w.b r ight ho r izo ns.co m / f am ily- reso u rces /e -familynews/2014-developing-critical-thinking-skills-in-children/.
Dear Parents, We’ve been looking at the IB Learner Profile attributes for the past three newsletter. In line with the IB values, ISV, we want our students to be Inquirers, Knowledgeable, Thinkers, Communicators, Principled, Open-Minded, Caring, Courageous, Balanced and Reflective. We’ve already looked at how you can help your child be more Caring and develop into deeper Inquirers. In this newsletter issue, we’ll look at how your child become more of a Thinker.
Have a good holiday! Warm regards, Sacha Calagopi PYP Coordinator
According to Ellen Galinsky, an educator and co-founder of Families and Work Institute, there are some things we can do to support critical thinking skills. These include: • Provide opportunities to play. It is during play that children test their thinking whether dropping a spoon over and over again off the side of a high chair tray; rolling two marbles down a chute to see which is faster; seeing what happens when you dip chalk in water; or mixing cornstarch and water to make "goop". Providing space for playing, including time for outdoor or pretend play, can provide open-ended opportunities to try something and see the reaction; try something else and see if you get a different reaction. This informal process of testing how things work is crucial to critical thinking. • Help children view themselves as problem solvers and thinkers by asking open-ended questions. Rather than automatically giving answers to the questions your child raises, help them think critically by asking questions in return: "What ideas do you have? What do you think is happening here?" Respect his or her responses whether you view them as correct or not. You could say, "That is interesting. Tell me why you think that." Use phrases like "I am interested to hear your thinking about this." "How would you solve this problem?" "Where do you think we might get more information about this problem?" • Don't solve all problems immediately for children. Instead ask some of the questions above and provide enough information so children don't get frustrated, but not so much information that you solve the problem for them. • Help children develop hypotheses. "If we do this, what do you think will happen?" "Let's predict what we think will happen next." • Encourage thinking in new and different ways. By allowing children to think differently, you're helping them hone their creative problem solving skills. Ask questions like, "What other ideas could we try?" or encourage coming up with other options, "Let’s think of all the possible solutions." • Support your child to research further information. You can help your children develop critical thinking skills by guiding them towards looking for more information. Say, "Now how could we find out more? Your dad knows a lot about this. Shall we ask him? Or shall we try searching on the computer?"
P.E updates from Mr. Liam Greetings all, This April the students participated in a sport day/ fun day at ISV. Students competed with peers in their grade and from the smiles on the student’s faces they had a great afternoon. The weather held out for the day as it looked like rain was going to take the day away. Thank you to parents for coming to ISV and supporting your child/ children, and ISV. Students have been expressing the enjoyment they are having in PE. This brings a smile to my face every time. The way students are interacting and sharing their knowledge with each other is an action that as a teacher and student is a great achievement. The students from PK through to Grade 8 helping each other to achieve a common goal, physically or verbally, is rewarding for all participating in the class. Watching and listening to English as second language students asking me, “ Mr. Liam, can I please have a minute to share the knowledge you have told us with my friend so they understand?” How can any teacher say no to this? I appreciate the assistance. Keeping the students interested in physical activity can be a challenge; however having students that really want to take part in an activity can make the day of another. ECA’s have been a hit. Students have had many options to participate in the ECA they will enjoy. The students have three days to take part in three different activities, and I believe the have done just that mixing their selections, which this quarter is great. Thank you Miss Patricia, Mr. Alex and all staff taking an ECA. Thank you Kind Regards Mr. Liam.
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French Updates from Ms Perrine K1 (Zoé, Ji woo and Minatsu) Zoe, Minatsu et Ji Woo ont continué à étudier les fruits sous forme de chanson et de jeux. Maintenant, nous allons ensemble apprendre le nom des légumes et plus tard savoir les décrire sous forme de phrases. Les enfants pourront bientôt dire de quelle couleur est le légume, si le légume est grand ou petit et s'il est bon ou pas bon. Nous pourrons ensuite catégoriser les fruits et les légumes par couleur, grandeur et goût.
G1 (Homare et Jonathan) Ça y est, nous avons enfin terminé notre calendrier et les enfants ont pu le ramener chez eux.
Homare et le mois de novembre
Jonathan et le mois de janvier
Grade 2 (Chuong) and Grade 3 (Laura) Chuong et Laura ont étudié les traits de personnalités. Ils peuvent maintenant d'écrire les principaux traits de caractères des personnes de leur entourage comme les membres de leurs familles et de leurs amis. Voici le résultat de leur travail: Jonathan et Homare travaillent sur leur calendrier
Les traits de personnalité des amis de Chuong G2
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Les traits de personnalité de la famille de Laura G3
French Updates from Ms Perrine Grade 6, 7 and 8
Grade4, 5 Les élèves des grades 4 et 5 commencent à étudier la ville, ses composants et sa communauté. Ils ont tout d'abord appris le vocabulaire des nombres ordinaux, puis le vocabulaire des directions afin de pouvoir écrire un itinéraire pour aller d'un endroit à un autre sur un plan donné. Ils ont étudié le plan donné, ont dessiné leur maison et ont commencé à écrire un itinéraire pour se déplacer vers les maisons de leur camarade de classe.
Tout comme les élèves des classes de grade 4 et 5, les élèves des grades 6, 7 et 8 étudient la ville. Ils sont plus avancés que les grades 4 et 5 donc après avoir étudié les notions de base. Ils savent maintenant écrire un itinéraire entre deux magasins ou entre deux bâtiments. Ils savent dans quel magasin acheter quel produit. Enfin, nous étudierons les métiers et les responsabilités des citoyens dans la ville.
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Science & Maths Updates from Ms. Mridula The middle school students have been working on geometrical concepts in Mathematics during the month of April. Grade 6 have completed the unit on triangles, quadrilaterals and three-dimensional shapes and have fared well in constructing two-dimensional figures. During the following weeks, they will be going back to algebra and doing the unit on linear equations. Grade 7 and Grade 8 have completed the unit on transformations and congruence and after the Spring Break, the students of Grade 7 will be working on dimensions and scales, while in Grade 8, the students will learn trigonometry.
In the Science classes, the students in the middle school have been focusing on concepts in chemistry with relevant investigations and practical work. Grade 6 are learning about mixtures and methods of separation, which will be followed by the chapter on electricity in physics. In Grade 7, the students will begin their lessons in physics with the chapters on magnetism and light. Grade 8 will continue with chemical reactions, after which they will study about electric circuits in physics.
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Music & Drama Updates from Mr. Daniel The Children of ISV are working busily toward our 2nd Annual celebration concert. This major event will include singing, dance, drama and instrumental playing from students in all grade levels. The whole school are learning certain songs which will be sung as a mass ensemble at the beginning and end of the celebration. Students will be singing the school song- ISV, Em yêu trường em, and our grand finale We are the World. Pre Kindergarten and Kindergarten 1 are learning The House Song, through which they are learning about different rooms in the house. Kindergarten 2 are preparing a song called Oh We Can Play on the Big Bass Drum. The students are plying instruments and learning the importance of taking turns while singing and playing. Grade 1 are rehearsing the dramatic song ‘Neath the Lilacs – a song with a moral. They will sing and act the song while communicating the important lesson that we shouldn’t tell lies. Grades 2 and 3 are collaborating on a song and dance entitled A Windmill in Old Amsterdam .The children will be playing mice, dancing a waltz, while being accompanied by a professional orchestra and their instruments. Grade 4 will perform a piece titled Ding, Dong the Cat She’s Gone on our recently delivered xylophones, glockenspiels and metallophones. They are working well indeed reading music notation on the treble and bass clefs. Grade 5 will be collaborating with Grade 6 on a beautiful piece named I am the Earth, the theme of which is the human race’s responsibility to caring for the planet. This is a two part harmony song, which features melodic overlaps and choral harmony. Grade 5 have also been completing their Movie Trailer project the product of which will be receiving its premier very soon. Grade 6 in addition to working on the celebration pieces have recently completed presentation and performances for their ‘What is Music?’ project . They are now beginning a new music theory unit on melodic and harmonic intervals – through which they will have to identify intervals in written and aural forms. Grade 7 are working on research for their project centred around the life and work of The Beatles. They are currently researching and will later be presenting their work and illustrating this with examples of the Beatles songs which they will have to perform as an ensemble. We are currently rehearsing a flute, violin, piano and bass arrangement of Yesterday. Grade 8 have now completed the writing of their musical theatre songs and are working, in Drama, on the staging, vocal and physical performances of the work. This will be presented at the 2nd year celebration. Grade 8 have also begun a new unit on The Blues. They are currently conducting research into the historical context and importance of this influential style. They are also learning about the structure of 12 bar blues songs and will be using this to eventually create original blues compositions.
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Arts Updates by Ms. Katherine Pre-K students are looking at blackand white design. We read the book Black Meets White, which also features a gray cat. Students cut and glued shapes (black on white), and drew illustrations of the story with white pastel on black paper.
K-1 students continued their investigation of patterns by looking at patterns created by weavers from around the world. They created colorful patterns by weaving with paper strips. K-2 students studied the work of modern artists such as Matisse and Chagall, who created lovely paintings by painting what they saw and imaginied outside their windows. K2 artists tried this themselves, drawing what they saw outside the art room windows.
Third grade artists are working on a self portrait. Not just any self-portrait, but a portrait from behind that shows what they will be famous for in the future. They studied two similar self portraits by illustrator Tomie DePaola, and the 17th century artist Jan Vermeer. They sketched scenes from outdoor adventures to famous inventions, and now finishing their self-portraits. Fourth grade students have been researching artists from a variety of cultures and times. They have each created a presentation that explains the significance of an artwork or artist in the context of the artist’s society and history.
First grade artists tried their hand at using pen and ink drawing to create various kinds of “fake” or simulated textures. They looked at a very detailed and very textured rhinoserus drawn by artist Albrect Durer, and then created some “textured” creatures of their own. Second grade artists have been looking at the work of illustrator Lois Elhert. Second graders learned painting techniques and created an assortment of colorful papers. They studied, cut and collaged butterfly shapes to create their own beautiful butterfly gardens.
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Arts Updates by Ms. Katherine Fifth grade artists have finished their portraits based on the work of Gustave Klimt. They created and collaged decorative patterns, working with geometric and organic shapes. They abstracted their figures but drew the faces relistically. Then they considered unity, harmony and emphasis when creating a finished composition.
Seventh grade artists are working with Surrealism. They bagan by investigating the work of artist Rene Magritte, who juxtaposed common everyday objects to create strange dream-like images. Seventh graders have been enjoying creating surrealist collages using this same concept.
Sixth grade students have been studying West African textile art. They were introduced to the culture and symbolism of the Senoufo people of the Ivory Coast. Looking at the Korohogo cloths of this society, they created figures that compliment the dyed patterns in their backgrounds.
Eighth grade artists are working with the compositions and vivid colors of the Fauve style of painting. They studied the work of artist Henri Matisse, and created a cut out desigm. Then, they photographed and sketched a still life, creating a variety of compositions to work from. They are currently experiementing with color using acrylic paint on canvas.
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Vietnamese updates from Ms. Hong Lớp mẫu giáo bé và mẫu giáo nhỡ (PK – K1): Học sinh được múa, hát về chủ đề “mái trường em” qua đó học sinh tự tin hát thi trong lớp. Chơi trò chơi dân gian: kéo co rèn luyện cho học sinh sự văn minh trong giờ chơi, lòng quyết tâm chiến thắng, rèn luyện thể lực. Xem phim “chú thỏ thông minh”; “Thánh Gióng” học sinh hiểu được ý nghĩa câu chuyện. Tô màu qua tranh vẽ theo chủ đề.
Lớp 4 (Grade 4): Học sinh đọc các vần oan, oăn – oanh, oach oat; oăt. Từ đó nối các vế câu thành câu hoàn chỉnh, có ý nghĩa, điền từ vào chỗ trống. Chủ đề: “Người ta là hoa đất”: qua bài giảng, học sinh thấy được tài năng và phẩm chất quý giá của con người đóng góp to lớn cho sự nghiệp xây dựng tổ quốc. Từ văn bản, học sinh luyện từ và câu (câu kể có xác định chủ ngữ, vị ngữ với câu hỏi: Ai thế nào?). Hướng dẫn học sinh biết làm bài văn tả đồ vật, cây cối có sử dụng các phép tu từ nhân hoá, so sánh. Chủ đề: “Vẻ đẹp muôn màu”: qua bài giảng, học sinh thấy được sự phong phú của trái cây, vẻ đẹp của phiên chợ tết ở miền quê đồng bằng Bắc bộ, từ đó học sinh viết chính tả phân biệt l/n; dùng từ đặt câu chính xác; đặt câu kể có chủ ngữ, vị ngữ “Ai thế nào” = rèn kĩ năng viết đoạn trong văn kể chuyện. Lớp 5 (Grade 5): Chủ đề: “Người công dân số một”. Qua bài dạy, giáo viên giúp học sinh hiểu được phẩm chất của người công dân; từ các văn bản, học sinh rèn kĩ năng luyện tập tả người; luyện từ và câu chính xác; mở rộng vốn từ phong phú.
Lớp mẫu giáo lớn (K2): Tô màu, vẽ tranh theo đề tài – thiên nhiên gần gũi với con người, học sinh biết cách chọn và phối hợp màu, lòng yêu thiên nhiên. Học hát: chủ đề về mẹ - cô giáo: yêu quý cô giáo, mẹ: học sinh tự tin khi lên biểu diễn một mình. Xem phim “khéo tay hay làm”: rèn kĩ năng sống và yêu lao động. Chơi trò chơi: “Ai nhanh hơn”: rèn phản xạ nhanh, trò chơi phát huy trí tuệ chủ đề: “so sánh”. Đọc chữ cái – ghép từ đơn giản: con gà – bông hoa.
Lớp 1 (Grade 1): Chủ đề “Bốn mùa”: học sinh hiểu được vẻ đẹp và ý nghĩa của từng mùa; dùng từ đặt câu, mở rộng câu, viết đoạn. Chủ đề trường học: học sinh được nâng cao tình cảm đối với mái trường thân yêu của mình. Từ đó học sinh luyện từ, câu, viết đoạn nói về chủ đề nhà trường một cách thuần thục. Đọc – viêt các vần khó. Lớp 2 (Grade 2): Chủ đề “Muông thú” qua đó giúp học sinh hiểu được sự phong phú của các loài thú – giá trị của nó. Mở rộng vốn từ về loài thú dấu chấm, dấu chấm phẩy. Đáp lời phủ định. Chủ đề “Sông biển”: Học sinh hiểu được về câu chuyện truyền thuyết “Sơn tinh, Thuỷ tinh”: qua đó học sinh thấy được tài năng chống thiên tai của người Việt cổ (xem tranh ảnh). Mở rộng vốn từ về sông, biển, dùng từ, đặt câu, viết đoạn, phân biệt các loại dấu: dấu chấm hỏi, dấu ngã; tr; ch. Giáo viên cho học sinh xem tranh ảnh về biển. Chủ đề “cha mẹ” qua đó học sinh hiểu được tình cảm và công lao to lớn của cha mẹ. luyện từ và câu; viết vần: uơ - uya. Lớp 3 (Grade 3): Chủ đề “Nhân dân”: qua giờ học, học sinh hiểu sự tích quả bầu, lòng yêu nước của Trần Quốc Toản, công lao của các cô bác công nhân quét rác làm sạch đẹp cho đường phố. Từ đó học sinh trân trọng các phẩm chất tốt đẹp của các nhân vật trong các văn bản. Học sinh luyện từ trái nghĩa, mở rộng vốn từ nghề nghiệp, phân biệt các phụ âm dễ nhầm: l/ n; s/x; tr/ch; các loại dấu: dấu chấm hỏi, dấu ngã. Làm văn: tả người thân từ 5-7 câu, đáp lời người khác. Chủ đề “ Ngôi nhà chung” : qua bài giảng, học sinh hiểu được trái đất là ngôi nhà chung của tất cả mọi người và muôn vật. Qua câu chuyện, học sinh biết kể lại toàn bộ chuyện theo lời nhân vật – rèn luyện tính tự tin nói trước người khác. Học sinh luyện từ và câu; viết đoạn văn về chủ đề “bảo vệ môi trường” và phân biệt các âm khó: s/x; l/n. Tiếp đó mở rộng vốn từ về thiên nhiên, đọc, viết chính tả.
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Vietnamese updates from Ms. Hong Lớp 6 (Grade 6) Tiếng Việt: hình thành khái niệm câu trần thuật đơn, câu trần thuật đơn có từ “là”, và câu trần thuật đơn không có từ “là”; chữa lỗi về chủ ngữ, vị ngữ. Từ đó học sinh biết phát hiện trong văn bản có những loại câu trên; biết đặt câu và viết đoạn. Học sinh kiểm tra văn học, tiếng Việt theo phân phối chương trình. Tập làm thơ 5 chữ. Học sinh học các văn bản miêu tả, nhận dạng. Từ đó các em biết viết đoạn văn miêu tả và hiểu được ý nghĩa của văn bản “Cầu Long Biên – chứng nhân lịch sử”. Đó là một cây cầu mang tính lịch sử - cũng là một nét đặc trưng của Hà Nội.
Lớp 7 (Grade 7): Chơi trò chơi: đi siêu thị: rèn kĩ năng sống, học sinh biết cảm ơn, giao tiếp khi mua bán, thanh toán tiền, trao đổi hàng. Nối hình: so sánh hình cao, thấp, dài, ngắn, đếm số mỗi loại, ghép mảng phần còn thiếu vào hình vẽ: rèn luyện tư duy toán học. Lớp 8 (Grade 8): Tiếng Việt: Lựa chọn trật tự từ trong câu – luyện tập – Từ đó học sinh biết cách sắp xếp từ trong câu một cách hợp lý, logic – song cũng có lúc cần nhấn mạnh ý – tả người; viết câu đúng logic; học sinh học các văn bản có yếu tố tự sự và miêu tả trong văn nghị luận. Từ đó, biết vận dụng vào bài viết tập làm văn một cách sinh động. Phần văn học nước ngoài – học sinh hiểu được tác dụng của việc “Đi bộ ngao du”. Lớp 9 (Grade 9): Tiếng Việt: học sinh hiểu được khái niệm về ý tường minh, nghĩa hàm ý để thấy được dụng ý của người viết. Tập làm văn: bài viết số 7 – học sinh rèn kĩ năng phân tích nghệ thuật, nội dung của đoạn thơ, bài thơ.
MS Non – Vietnamese classes updates Grade 6 - 7 - 8 We reviewed Nouns, Verbs and Adjectives, then students knew how to use them to make sentences and to write a paragraph. They also practiced to fill out right tones and words after listening to teacher’s reading, to choose the correct answers and rearrange the order of words in each sentence.
Phần văn học nước ngoài: qua bài học, học sinh thấy được tình mẫu tử của nhân vật trong bài thơ “Mây và sóng”. Từ đó, trân trọng, nâng cao, biết ơn tình cảm đối với mẹ. Văn bản nói về thời kì chống Mĩ cứu nước của dân tộc Việt Nam đã ca ngợi vẻ đẹp tâm hồn và phẩm chất đáng quý của các cô gái thanh niên xung phong làm nhiệm vụ khai thông tuyến đường giao thông huyết mạch từ Bắc vào Nam. Bồi dưỡng cho học sinh lòng tự hào và biết ơn những người đã hy sinh tuổi trẻ vì tổ quốc Việt Nam.
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ICT updates from Mr. Michael Grade 6 Grade 6 finished their online games on the sploder.com website. They graded each other’s games and looked at ways to improve their own games’ ranking.
Grade 7 Grade 7s have been looking at the basics of HTML by using an add-on in the Firefox browser called ‘X-Ray Goggles’. The students ‘hacked’ a website by changing the HTML code and replacing the words and pictures on the webpage. A student hacked the FBI website by changing the images and words. The webpages were not actually hacked by the students, they just changed the HTML code on their computer’s web browser but it gave the impression of the webpage being hacked. Students then looked at advanced searching techniques using Google advanced search and Instragrok.com. They looked at different ways of presenting information by using a website called prezi.com. The grade 7s then looked at ‘flipping’ youtube videos by using Mozilla Popcorn Maker to add their own images, words and links onto the video. They also added links to a quiz that they had created based on the video clip.
The students then looked at different ways to present information by creating an animation on the theme of computing using a web based animation programme called goanimate.com. They explored the different features of the programme by personalizing the characters, adding their own dialog and thinking about the sequences of their animation.
Currently the grade 7s are collaborating with the grade 8s to create their own wiki on wikispaces.com. Each student created a page based on a topic from iGCSE ICT.
Students were then able to watch each other’s animations. Grade 6 then looked at other ways to present information by using a programme called Popcorn Maker. This lets the students take a youtube clip and add their own comments, pictures and web links to the animation in order to give a better explanation about what the video clip is about. This reinforced the student’s understanding of sequencing and timelines. Finally the students were introduced to the exciting world of augmented reality by using an app called Aurasma. This lets anyone create an ‘Aura’. An ‘Aura’ is a picture that appears to come alive by playing an animation or video whenever someone scans it with the Aurasma app.
Grade 8 Grade 8s have looked at advanced searching techniques and explored issues of copyright. They used prezi.com to understand how different presentation techniques can be used depending on the subject matter. Grade 8s are now starting to look at next year’s iGCSE curriculum by creating a wiki based on topics from Cambridge iGCSE. In this task they are learning more about collaboration by creating the wiki with the grade 7s. The students are creating their wiki pages using text, images and other elements they have learnt such as prezis and surveys using surveymonkey.com. They also looked at HTML on webpages and changed some HTML code on existing websites thus getting an understanding of how webpages are constructed.
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Humanities Updates by Mr. Ronald
English Updates by Mr. Janos Grade 6 has been working their way through Midsummer Night’s Dream. We have been examining vocabulary, character, and motivation. We have completed our study of stage combat, written comic strips to interpret scenes, and the students will write their unit test in the week after they get back from Spring Break. Grade 7 is completing act 4 of Romeo and Juliet. We have finished our analysis of act 1 scene 1 in terms of stage combat, and we will be writing essays over the Spring Break. They should be prepared for a test in the first week after they get back from Spring Break. Grade 8 has just completed Macbeth and will be writing an essay on the role of nature in the play. Similar to grade 6 & 7, they should be prepared to write a test in the first week after they get back from Spring Break.
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In ISV MS Humanities we have had another exciting month. In addition to the coursework in our texts that we are completing, we have been increasing our knowledge of Human/Environment Interaction. This is one of the Five Themes of Geography and we are emphasizing this theme this year. Students made presentations based on knowledge they gained through Internet research, field trips, and a guest speaker we had come to our school last month. Students had a great learning session with American Conservationist Rob Greenfield. It was the initiation of our school garden! Students got exciting instructions from our guest. It was great to see the students so engaged! Our field trip to Cuc Phuong National Park
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