Panaga School Biweekly, Issue 140

Panaga School Biweekly

Panaga School Biweekly

Panaga School IFM/4, BSPCompany Sdn Bhd, Seria, KB, 3534, Negara Brunei Darussalam

Phone: Teraja Office +673 3372139/2232 Rampayoh Office +673 3372694/3971

Principal: Brian Platts Brian.Platts@bsp-shell.bn

Mendaram/Rampayoh Deputy Principal Donna Bonham donnabonham@panagaschool.net

Teraja Deputy Principal: Aimee Boase aimeeboase@panagaschool.net

Melilas Deputy Principal: Mandy Russell amandarussell@panagaschool.net

Business Service Lead: CylaAhmad cylaahmad@panagaschool.net

Panaga School Biweekly

Editors: Hannah Zakaria & Donovan Dolamit publications@panagaschool.net

DearParents.

HappyMaulidNabitoourMuslimfriendsandcommunity.

Please find another bumper issue of our Bi-Weekly which is bursting with learning, fun and engaging activities, visits and lots of progress and achievement; we've had International Dot Day, Learners of the Week, Chocolate and Explorer and Adventurer entry points, 'makey makeys', sampling, Ancient Greeks, and a Mandarin visit to Chung Hwa Kiudang School,tonamejustafew.

I have just attended my first ever Nigerian Independence Day Panaga School Assembly and what a fabulous experience it was, bursting (again) with colour, energy and a genuine sense of international mindedness and community. ThankyousomuchtoourNigeriancommunity.

OurDutchcommunitycelebratedtheopeningofthenewparliamentaryyear (Prinsjesdag) this year with our NTC students receiving some very special treats from a very special person (read on to find out more). Our NTC students begin their reading marathon next Monday, which is also the start dateforour'BigPedal'-pleasedoreadmoreandgetinvolved.

Huge congratulations to K Jin (M1) and Gregory (P7) for representing the schoolsowellthisweekwhenvisitingISBtoexhibittheirRubik'scubeskills and also all 18 of our students who participated in the Spelling Bee Competition at the Panaga Club last Saturday (there were 29 students in total),anextraspecialmentiontoJibrilinP6forcomingfirstandRyaninP5 forcomingsecond.

The best of luck to our Under 13 netball and football teams who will be competingagainstJISnextWednesdayandallofourcrosscountryrunners who will be competing against a host of other schools next Friday 6th October.

There is a lot of work going on behind the scenes to prepare our school for the transition to working with JIS, beginning from the next academic year. I would like to introduce Tamsin Harris, who is the JIS Transition lead. Tamsin has been living and working in Brunei for 24 years with 21 years at JIS, most recently as Head of the Junior School. Tamsin's experience and passion will be instrumental in ensuring the transition process is successful. As part of the engagement sessions, Nick Sheehan, the CEO of JIS, will be in Panaga School on Tuesday 17th October, to meet with parents and answer any questions you may have. I will provide more details nearerthetime.

Havealovelyweekend.

- Brian, SLT and all of our staff.

We had lots of Dotty fun on International Dot Day in Mendaram!

This is an amazin day to celebrate children’s confidence with mark-makin . The day is inspired by the story ‘The Dot’ by Peter Reynolds about a little irl who does not know how to start her picture. Her teacher tells her to start with a dot and then amazin thin s happen…and don’t or et to si n your art work. Dot Day is celebrated all year round in Mendaram as we ive the children the confidence and skills to make their mark! Mendaram Team

International Dot Day in P1

In P1 we developed our artistic and fine motor skills through a range of ‘Dot’ themed activities. We cooperated with our friends and were able to communicate our ideas.

Drama and Dots!

On International Dot day, we thought about how different and special we all were. Then we were challenged with creating a Dotty Character using Face Paint. Well well well…. We did not really have to think hard. Can you guess who we are?

Drama and Dots!

JOKE ALERT!

Question: Why can’t you hide while wearing polka dots?

Answer: Because you’ll always be spotted!

Could characters ever be dottier than this bunch?

P4 Entry Point for our Chocolate Unit

P4 students used their senses to make discoveries about chocolate. They were blindfolded and were asked to smell the chocolate and see if they could predict the flavour; next they listened to the ‘snap’ of the piece of chocolate; lastly they tasted it, paying attention to its texture, how quickly it melted and how strong the after taste was. Then they tried to guess what kind of chocolate it was.

We tasted mint dark chocolate, berry dark chocolate. They were bitter.

I liked the milk chocolate the best because it was creamy.

Somewere sweet,some weresalty.Iliked thefruityone!

Welearnedthat chocolatecanhaveafruity taste.

Itwasdelicious andfun.Iloved thewhiteone.

Onewas bitter,andI lovedthe milkone.

P5 Entry Point Explorer and Adventurer

OurP5childrenbecameexplorersfor theafternoon,followingclueshidden aroundtheschooltolocatethecodefor theircompass!

Usingtheircompassbearingtheyuncovered ahiddenbackpack.

Theirlocationknowledgewasthenputtothetestwheretheyhad tosortitemstheywouldpacktoexploreplacessuchasthe desertorpolarregions.

WelldoneP5youusedyourenquiry, collaborationandcommunication.

Over the past few weeks in Digital Education, Middle Years have been continuing to CODE! M1 have finished their doorbells and reviewed them using Jamboard and Google Forms. They are looking forward to bringing them to life with a Makey Makey! M2 are using their CODING skills to plan and carry out a digital egg drop!

PANAGA SCHOOL MANDARIN STUDENTS VISIT TO CHUNG HWA KIUDANG SCHOOL

The Chinese cultural exchange trip to Chung Hwa Kiudang School was a remarkable cultural exchange experience for Panaga students that provided a fascinating insight into Chinese traditions and arts.

Chinese calligraphy.Students learned the art of writing

Chinese characters using traditional brushes and ink.

Chinese paper cutting students explored the delicate art of crafting intricate designs from paper.they had the chance to create their own beautiful paper-cut artworks.

Mooncake-making. Students were taught how to prepare and mold mooncake dough, fill it with delicious pandan fillings, This experience allowed them to savor the taste of traditional Chinese cuisine while learning about the importance of food in Chinese celebrations.

Throughout the cultural exchange, participants not only acquired practical skills but also gained a deeper understanding of the rich cultural heritage of China. They were able to bridge cultural gaps, foster connections, and develop a greater appreciation for the importance of cultural exchange in building mutual respect and understanding among different communities.

Certificates of Honour

Well done to the following children who were recognised for their effort and progress in our assembly on the 8th September. We continue to be very proud of you!

Well done to the following children who were recognised for their effort and progress in our assembly on the 15th September. We continue to be very proud of you!

Prinsjesdag in NTC

Tuesday 19th September 2023, was Prinsjesdag in the Netherlands: the opening of the new parliamentary year.

King Willem-Alexander read his annual ‘Speech from the Throne’. The speech contains the Dutch government’s plans for the coming year.

The Dutch ambassador to Brunei and Singapore, Her Excellency Mrs. Anneke Adema, surprised our NTC students with an orange treat to celebrate the event.

M2 QUADRAT SAMPLING: World map under Teraja tent

This week in science the M2 learned about sampling in ecology. They applied their learning on sampling techniques to estimate the % of land coverage on the worldmapundertheTerajatent.Eachgroupdidatleast 10 random sampling using a 5m x 5m quadrat on a 448 metresquareworldmap.

Theclass’smean%is24.7%oflandcoveragewhichisnot far from the actual result of 29% land coverage. WelldoneM2!

M1 History - Ancient Greece

The children in M1 have been learning about the legacy of Ancient Greece as part of their learning this half-term. The children have been finding out how Ancient Greek culture and their inventions and discoveries influence us today in many different ways. For example, democratic government began in Ancient Athens, the Olympic Games first took place in 776 BCE and continues to this day and Greek architecture can be seen all around us (we even noticed some Doric columns outside our classroom!).

The M1 children retold some Greek myths in history this week. These included learning about the vanity of Narcissus, the greed of King Midas and the arrogance of Arachne. The children also learnt how we still use words from these stories today. For instance, a vain person can be described as narcissistic and arachnophobia is a fear of spiders. Here are some photos of the M1 children retelling their Greek myths along with some amphorae with Olympic designs..

Rubik’s Revolution

Many of you may remember K Jin (M1) and Gregory (P7) competed in the Miri Stem Cube Competition in May and featured in an assembly last year sharing their skills. Well their fame has spread and this week they were invited to ISB Seria to demonstrate and coach a group of students. They visited Ms. McCready and her group of eager mathematicians who were keen to explore the patterns and algorithms of solving a Rubik’s cube.

Cube Craze

We are always on the lookout to make connections with other schools and students near and far and it is always fantastic when students get to share their passions, knowledge, skills and understanding with others.

The awe and wonder was ever present: with comments of ‘Wow’when K Jin and Gregory demonstrated their speed (13 seconds to complete a cube!). The comments of ‘that’s so difficult’ were soon replaced by ‘Let me show you’, ‘I did it!’ and ‘Who can I help, I can do the first bit’ as the students taught and supported each other. Great Learning, Collaboration and Fun.

Bzzzzzzzzzzz…..

Panaga Club was set a-buzzing as Spellers arrived from all over Seria for the 2023 Panaga Club Spelling Bee Competition. With 18 players from our school, 10 from St. Margaret and one from ISB, it promised to be exciting…AND IT WAS! The Spellers kept going and would not stop!

JIBRIL USMAN SARKI emerged as the 2023 Spelling Bee Champion!! RYAN SIM snagged the 2nd position and WENG YEE from St. Margaret went home in 3rd place. Congratulations to all the Spellers! You are now officially… A BEE!

JIBRILUSMAN SARKI RYAN SIM

WENGYEE

Nigerian Independence Day

The land is Green!!!! We had a lot of fun sharing our Nigerian culture with the rest of the school today! Our friends laughed, danced and celebrated with us. They even answered questions about our country and got it right too! United we stand,Dividedwefall.

Nigerian Independence Day

Though we have over 370 tribes and speak over 500 languages, we always remind ourselves that winning happens when we cooperate and work together… just like we do in school. Happy Independence Day Nigeria!

Ditch the car and grasp those handlebars!

Last year, we cycled 4000.3km.

How far can we go this year?