K1’S BIG CANVAS SHOW
TKS’s youngest students (K1) held an opening night for their Big Canvas Art Show at the Island Recreation Center in February. As part of the ‘How We Express Ourselves’ unit of inquiry, all K1 classes worked collaboratively to create 13 very unique, student-led artworks on large canvases. Each class explored different media and art elements. The children had to problem-solve, take a few risks and work as a team in order to make their class masterpieces. The show was was a great success! Children proudly described and shared their art works with friends and family. The exhibit is a celebration of these young students hard work, knowledge and communication skills. By: Olga Pacheco Oreamuno
March 1, 2018
From the Director International-mindedness is a foundational principle in the IB educational philosophy and the heart of the continuum of international education. International-mindedness is a way of thinking that supports our students’ deeper and broader understanding of our complex world and their roles within it. Internationally-minded students appreciate their own cultures and personal histories, and are open to the perspectives, values and traditions of other individuals and communities and make an effort to learn more about them. At TKS throughout the year we infuse the curriculum with opportunities for students to become more international-minded and to celebrate and practice intercultural understanding and respect. Many of the student’s service learning opportunities and personal projects provide opportunities to heighten their cultural and intercultural awareness and understanding. During international week, however, we focus in a special way on international-mindedness. This week our students have been celebrating their own and the cultures of their fellow students and enhancing their intercultural understanding and respect. We hope this is helping them to become more accustomed to seeking and evaluating a range of points of view and growing from the experience. In particular, we hope there are learning ‘to understand that other people, with their differences, can also be right’.
We look forward to seeing you and your family at the Parade of Nations and Picnic this evening to celebrate the culturally diverse community of KAUST.
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In a nutshell: Summaries of February’s PAC meetings Kindergarten PAC: • Positive feedback from KG Breakfast meetings about opportunity to interact with children’s friends and their parents. • Agreed that KG leadership will introduce PAC members at KG Breakfast event next year. • Communication plan and program for Partners of Learning was noted. • Agreed that KG team would investigate sending daily SMS to parents during International Week with reminders of daily themes. • Feedback re: amended attendance letter was noted. • Agreed that swimming schedule will be reviewed with a view to scheduling K2 swimming away from the winter months.
Caring
Elementary PAC: • Progress report on development of new phased Arabic program. • Discussed transition to new Arabic program, including parent-information session to be held in May. • Received feedback on mathematics workshop agenda for parents, led by consultant Ellen Alquist.
Secondary PAC: • The school shared with parents a template for curriculum documentation and asked parents for feedback. The curriculum documentation is meant for a parent audience and will assist parents to understand the curriculum better. Curriculum overviews will be available for parents next academic year. • A parent queried whether students know where to go if they are aware of well-being issues related to their fellow students. The school explained that students know how to find the counselors or the Principals to share their own issues or concerns related to other students.
IMPORTANT TKS DATES: Spring Break: Sun, March 25 - Sat, April 7, 2018 TKS Graduation: Wed, May 23, 2018 (evening) Last day of School for Students: Thur, June 7, 2018 Faculty Closure Day: Thur, June 14, 2018
from Justin Somerville, KG Principal Dear Parents, This week has provided us with an opportunity to celebrate the many countries and cultures that make up our Kindergarten community. Throughout International Week, the children have been so excited to share in many ways, where they come from and what it means to them. From traditional foods to clothing and much more, This reminds us all, that we are so lucky to live in such a diverse community. We also had two wonderful assemblies on Tuesday morning with performances from various cultural groups within the community. The children enjoyed watching and were a fantastic audience.
KG Principal Justin Somerville dresses for International Week.
K1 Taking Action - King Abdullah Monument For our inquiry into the Sharing the Planet we visited the King Abdullah Monument to feed the fish. While we were there, students noticed trash on the ground. This led to a discussion about good and bad choices. The class agreed that throwing trash on the floor is a bad choice because it could get into the water and make the fish sick. As a result of this trip, children were eager to make a difference, so we decided to come back another day to clean up. Julia came up with an idea of making signs to remind people not to throw trash on the floor, so in class, we also worked on a poster. We plan to hang it in the community for everyone to see it. This is one small example of how even some of our youngest learners can take steps towards making a difference. by Marwah Ashrour
Greetings from KG International Week
Together we have been living under a ‘Big Blue Sky’ and became an ocean awash in blue (on Sunday Feb 25). The week was launched with assemblies celebrating the many nationalities and cultures that make up the KG Teams in the East and West Buildings. Rolling on to Monday – our families produced scrumptious dishes to make for a food festival in the classrooms. The children loved this culinary cruise around the foods that were firm family favorites. Cultural celebratory assemblies were the order of the day on Tuesday. Adults and children proudly gave us a taste of dances, music and songs from their home nations. What a privilege to be living amongst so many nationalities. There were many ‘Mystery Readers’ on Wednesday around our KG Campus. Each with a special story to enchant the children with – wonder what stories the children had to relay from what they listened to! This week wraps up with our KG community wearing their national colors and/or sports kit that captures the essence of our international make-up. You’ll get to share the joy as the children carry them with pride during ‘Parade of Nations’. by Ingrid McCormack
from Jeff Woodcock, GES Principal Making Thinking Visible with Mark Church In February, Mark Church, of Harvard’s Project Zero focusing on Making Thinking Visible, visited TKS to work with teachers. This was his second visit during this academic year. In his first visit, he shared with the elementary teachers a number of thinking routines he has helped develop in his work with Harvard. The routines are simple structures that can be used across grade levels and even in university. What makes them routines is that they get used over and over again in the classroom so they become a natural part of how students approach learning. During this most recent visit, Mark facilitated learning labs for teachers. Mark supported teachers in each grade to plan a rigorous learning opportunity that encouraged deep thinking, then a teacher led that lesson with their students while all the other teachers observed. Afterwards all the teachers reflected regarding the effectiveness of the lesson alongside Mark. The experience was extremely for all the teachers as it put the focus on creating rich thinking opportunities for children.
Mark found the experience to be tremendously positive, remarking that he has found the TKS teachers to be completely engaged in learning and passionate about constantly developing their teaching practice.
G3 Arabic B
The Arabic B program that GES offers for non-native speaker students is a unique opportunity for these students to learn Arabic. In the class, setting up routines and structures is a very important part to ensure success in the program. Students know their level of Arabic and they understand that we all have different needs and abilities. Routines in the class make the learning process easier and more enjoyable. In my G3 classes, most students have reached a point where they can learn independently if instructions and expectations are clear for them. One of the routines they do in class is making their own weekly mini lessons and then recording these lessons using a photobooth application. If interested, please check with G3 students to watch their educational videos. By Wjdan Qari, Elementary Teacher
Counselors Corner
In Elementary we’ve been working on improving school culture with a number of initiatives which have launched this term. One of these is the Random Acts of Kindness group in G5 looking at spreading kind words and deeds across TKS.
Last week ten G5 students posted notes on lockers of the Secondary school students whilst others painted rocks that were left in the gardens with words of encouragement. Please continue to encourage your child to be kinder than they need to be, smile and say good morning as they walk the corridors in the school, be generous to others and use their words to lift others up.
Red Sea Researchers visit G1 During the unit on Sharing the Planet, G1 students are inquiring into how living things depend on each other to survive. As a part of the inquiry, Royale and Matt from Red Sea Research Center came to speak about the Red Sea and how the living things in the ocean depend on each other. They shared about their work, what they are researching, how they conduct their research, and why it is important. They also gave us some things to think about, such as ways we can take action by reducing waste and being careful about the kind of ďŹ sh we buy to eat. One of the most impactful demonstrations they did was to make an interactive food chain where pairs of students were a different part of the ocean food chain. Students were seagrass, dugongs, whale sharks, plankton, coral, etc, and each pair of students was connected by rope to another set of students to show that they depend on each other. Everyone was connected in some way, and when the two most basic things disappeared (the seagrass and algae), it affected nearly everyone in the food chain! It was an eye opening demonstration of just how important even the most basic things are to the ocean ecosystem. By Ashley Rowell, G1 Teacher
Learning through Field Trips
KAUST has so many amazing opportunities for students to explore how living things depend on one another to survive, so G1 has sought to maximize the opportunities available to us. We’ve been to the nursery where we got to plant our own flower. We took a tour of the golf course where Mr. Brian James shared with us how the different birds and other wildlife interact with one another and how KAUST has created an area in the middle of the desert where birds can thrive. We also ventured out to visit the mangroves to observe a very important ecosystem in the world. In all of these field trips, we’ve had the opportunity to find examples of how living things interact and depend on each other to survive, and we have seen firsthand how humans can impact the environment for better or for worse. By Ashley Rowell, G1 Teacher
Learning through Field Trips
Ways to Talk with your Child We think and learn through language. Rich language opportunities allow children to become successful communicators and build social skills for friendships. (Himmele,2009). With the increasing use of technology for entertainment and communication, our main interactions of the day can often be the instructions required to get things done or to be on time! We can frequently find ourselves talking at our children rather than with them. How can you chat intentionally with your child? It’s the simple conversational exchanges during normal weekday routines at home, going to the supermarket or on family outings that can make a big difference to your child’s oral language development. Ideas when you are shopping: Going to Tamimi or any shopping trip try using these questions to chat with your child. The words in bold are very important as they are concepts that underpin reading and math• What do we need before we go shopping? • What should we buy first ? • What will we buy now? • We have finished, can you remember the things we have bought? Ideas when you are reading with your child: • What is the first thing that happened in this story? • Can you tell me the first /last sound in this word? • Tell me about your favorite story. • What was the first thing the main character did? What did they do next? What is in that picture? (Use your native language and english)
Never underestimate the value of sitting and chatting about what may appear to be mundane things you are doing routinely. Learning doesn’t have to be with a pen and paper after school. Remember, by chatting intentionally while moving about your day, you are developing your child’s oral language and building vocabulary for the classroom. By Dianne Walker, Learning Support
from David Tigchelaar, GSS Principal During the months of January and February students, teachers and parents participated in many events: • The Winter Concert took place on 31 January at 5 pm in the GSS Auditorium • We hosted the RSAC U14 football tournament on 1 & 2 February • A group of G6 - 8 students travelled to Bangkok from 1 - 5 February to participate in a festival organised by The International Schools’ Theatre Association (ISTA) • Mock Exams for G12 took place from 4 - 12 February • Mark Church, a consultant working with Harvard University visited GSS from 11 - 13 January. • The G10 Personal Project was showcased at school on 14 February. • The GSS Sports day took place on 15 February We are looking forward to the following events in the next few weeks: • The SAIKAC Basketball U16 will take place at TKS on 8 & 9 March https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1iwEY3vESsVsXw-fzlOu_O3onxTEB4tn1YnnIB6y6Ik/edit?usp=sharing View the U16 Basketball Schedule Here • Students will present their talents in the Variety show on 13 March at 5 pm in the GSS Auditorium • Night School will take place on 15 March from 6 - 10 for all Secondary students. • The G12 Art exhibition will open on 19 March at 5:30 pm • There will be a Parent Information session for G12 parents on 21 March from 7:30 to 8:00 am about the IB exam and results process. • Student Led Conferences will take place for Gr 6 - 10 students and parents on 21 March from 8:00 - 10:30. Students will not be required to be at school after the Student Led Conferences are finished. Gr 11 and 12 students do not participate in Student Led Conferences.
The Impact of Coral Bleaching
G10’s completed an interdiscilinary unit on The Impact of Coral Bleaching. You can see an installation of the final visual representation upstairs in the GSS flag pavilion. Photo above by Roger Gribbins
GSS ARTS SPECIAL ISTA Bangkok, February 2018 Eleven students, two teachers, four flights and one unforgettable experience! TKS students recently attended the ISTA Bangkok conference held at the Bangkok Patana School during February. ISTA (International Schools Theater Association) festivals are known around the world as the creative genesis of so many young artists’ passion for Drama. ISTA brings artists from all over the world to guide mixed ensembles of students from a wide variety of schools, countries, backgrounds, and cultures through an exploration of the dramatic arts.
The connections to the Thai culture were evident from the very beginning of the festival, when a group of local dancers showed the group of several hundred international students a traditional dance celebrating the life and death. This theme provided an avenue for students to explore imaginatively and create a piece of devised theater guided by their professional artist ensemble leader, in collaboration with their peers. After only a few hours of workshops, groups were engaging in challenging artistic visions and pushing their own abilities to create art that moved their audience. TKS had a small, incredibly talented delegation of students representing our school and Mr. Webb and Mrs. Kennedy could not have been more pleased with their willingness to participate, their eagerness to learn, and their ability to work as members of an ensemble. We look forward to many more ISTA festivals in the future!
Visual Arts G7 Hand Doodles Human fingerprints are detailed, nearly unique, difficult to alter, and durable over the life of an individual, making them suitable as long-term markers of human identity. G7 students created doodle patterns as a representation and expression of their individuality, uniqueness, diversity, as well as their similarity. This exercise was part of their exploration of line and texture as elements of art.
GSS ARTS SPECIAL Storytelling Performance - G7 visits KG On Sunday, February 11th, the students from Mr. Webb and Mrs. Kennedy’s G7 Drama classes culminated their unit of study on Storytelling with a showcase for our friends from K1. The performance not only gave the Drama students a chance to share their growing understanding of the dramatic arts and our key concept of identity, but also provided an opportunity to test their skills in front of a live (and adorable) audience. The guest audience was superb, and the stories showed the power stories have to shape and transmit cultures. The event was a huge success and we hope to create more opportunities to share our knowledge and understanding of Drama and our world around our campus.
Drawing Unit - G9 In this G9 unit, students develop their drawing skills to explore the statement of inquiry: Drawing can be used to discover, observe and convey the world around us, from new and interesting perspectives. Students also addressed the MYP concepts of aesthetics, composition and style and the global context personal and cultural expression. John Muji G9 (artwork to the left) explains “I was inspired to use the skull as my object from Leonardo Da Vinci’s Series of Skull Drawings. Leonardo’s style of drawing fits with the message I am trying to convey.”
Ben Powell G9 (artwork to the right) “The style of my drawing is abstract. I chose this as it will be interesting to see how a pair of abstract eyes turns out in an abstract format. I want to try and express the feeling of being unique and seeing different perspectives. Being your own person and looking through a different lens. ”
GSS ARTS SPECIAL Boxtree Acting Workshop Twenty students from G8-11 spent an afternoon learning from professional actors from the BOXTREE company, what actors really do all day. Did you know for example, that when actors go for auditions… they often play games, improvise scenes, and make up stories? Casting directors do this to see if actors can come up with original ideas on the spot, and respond spontaneously to ideas they are given for characters and situations. The students developed their communication and physical performance skills - even creating moving “machines” with their bodies! After the workshop, students were taken on a tour of the stage set for Boxtree’s new production of The Wind in the Willows that the company brought to KAUST. Students were surprised that the whole story could be told with such a simple set – just a few platforms and two archways. Students were also amazed to see the organization of the backstage area, where there were a multitude of props – all carefully organized to ensure the smooth progression of the performance. Truly an insight into the actor’s world!
Spring Semester 2018 Co-Curricular Arts Activities The Arts at TKS are growing!! This Spring Semester, your Arts Department is excited to offer a number of co-curricular opportunities for students of all levels. Our talented music teachers (Mrs. Norwood and Mrs. Johnson) will lead explorations in music through Glee Club and Percussion Group as well as a Music Academy honing in on the rudimentary skills to produce dulcet melodies. Our skillful art teachers (Mrs. Sondus and Mr. Were) will hold Art Club gatherings after school where students can experiment with any number of visual art media. Our visionary drama teachers (Mrs. Kennedy and Mr. Webb) will engage students in critical, creative, and on-the-spot thinking through our very first Improv Club. Clearly there is something for everyone happening in the Arts at TKS!
GSS ARTS SPECIAL Diverse Performances at the GSS Winter Concert Students from G6-12 arts courses gathered to share their learning with an audience at the annual Winter Concert. They performed as musicians, movers, painters, actors, and presented pieces they developed or practiced in class. Curricular connections were the focus of the evening, with students showcasing their artistic knowledge and skills acquired in TKS Arts courses. We heard G6 communicate messages through singing, showing their understanding of music having a purpose. G7 music rocked out to “Boulevard Of Broken Dreams” as a culmination of a unit on the ways in which societal and technological changes impact how music is made and used. G7 Drama students brought a Nigerian folktale to life, explaining why the sky is so far away. Selected G8 music students shared their artistic intention and result of our “mashup” unit where they combined baroque classical music with elements of hip hop! G9 students showcased the music of Michael Jackson and Bob Marley, the result of their research about music being an avenue for social and political change. We heard from G8 artists about their mask-making unit, displaying specific elements tied to historical cultures and their current lives. IB Diploma Arts students were involved too: Visual arts students explained their artwork with depth and insight, helping viewers to step inside the artist’s mind. Diploma theatre students showed us what a difference the choice of music can make to the emotional impact of a scene. In this event, we saw and heard things from all around the world, in various forms, and by secondary arts students in every grade. Even more amazing is that what happened on stage that night is just the tip of the iceberg! Students are exploring the world through the lens of the arts every day at TKS, developing their skills, creating original pieces and expressing their ideas.
GSS ARTS SPECIAL DIPLOMA PROGRAMME NEWS In the first semester of the first ever Diploma Theatre course at KAUST, students have already learned and achieved so much! They were heavily involved in the school musical, Alice Through the iPhone – not only as performers but also writing script, directing scenes, creating choreography and running rehearsals and creating promotional materials. They used the context of the musical to practice one of their first assignments, the Director’s Notebook. Students have led mini-workshop sessions for each other, explored unfamiliar theatre traditions, researched and engaged in practical explorations, for example of Ancient Greek Theatre. Currently the students are creating a collaborative project, where they develop and perform a piece of theatre from a stimulus – an object, piece of music, image or theme – of their choice. During this process, they investigated the ways in which audience experiences can be shaped and different perspectives shown through choosing different styles of music for the exact same movement sequence.
Invitation to the
G12 Visual Arts Exhibition When: Monday to Thursday March 19 - 22, 2018 Where: University Library You are cordially invited to attend the opening ceremony of the Grade 12 final Visual arts exhibition. Bring along family and friends and we do hope that you will stay and have a chat with the students about their artworks after the ribbon cutting ceremony at 5:15 pm on the March 19, 2018. See you there!
Viva Voce 2018
For the ďŹ rst time in the history of DP at TKS, the G12 students engaged in a public Viva Voce on February 21st and 22nd. The students defended their Extended Essay in an oral dialogue with their Supervisors in the presence of their parents, teachers, and peers from G11. The audience was invited in order to join the celebration of this academic achievement. As for the students of G11, it also showcased the academic vigor that is posed by the IB via the Extended Essay. Our G12 students left the audience in no doubt about the skills that they have developed throughout their studies in the IB. This achievement would not have been possible without the mentorship of the teachers and external supervisors. It was this collaboration between students and mentors, which fostered the necessary critical thinking skills to enhance the academic culture in the secondary school, that we all witnessed those two days. Congratulations to the cohort of 2018! Catherine de Levay, EE Coordinator
Personal Project Final Exhibition On Wednesday, February 14th 46 G10 students celebrated their personal and academic growth by presenting the ďŹ ndings of their Personal Projects. Community members, parents and students were enlightened with new concepts, ideas and reections.
Congratulations Grade 10!
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TKS Students visit Thuwal Schools for Recycling Workshop Five G11 students from TKS joined up with peers at Thuwal School Intermediate and Secondary Schools for Girls on during February for a recycling awareness workshop, as part of the Environment element of KAUST’s Young Learners’ Development Program (YLDP). Accompanied by three members of the Social Responsibility team, the girls made two presentations, one to each school, in both Arabic and English. To show how reusing and recycling can be fun and creative, the TKS students had brought along two ideas and all the necessary resources to share with the Thuwal students. For the first project, the Thuwal students worked through recycling t-shirts into useful bags and for the second project, the students made good use of plastic bottles by turning them into decorated plant pots, finishing with a little bit of soil and flower seeds. The TKS students were outstanding representatives for KAUST and TKS – they had excellent presentation skills, talking through the Reduce, Reuse and Recycling Program clearly and knowledgeably and then, having demonstrated the t-shirt and bottle exercise, worked together with the girls on the projects. Likewise, the Thuwal students were a most conscientious audience, listening carefully and able to put the presentation into production. The two groups engaged very well, with some renewing acquaintances with those they had already met at English classes, WEP and the friendly sports fixtures. Although some of the Arabic speaking TKS students were a little reticent in using their Arabic in case it wasn’t up to scratch, they won praise from the teachers, particularly the Principal of the Intermediate School. For TKS students this visit goes towards the Creativity Activity Service (CAS) element of the IB Diploma, which aims to assist students in enhancing their personal and interpersonal development by learning through experience. Thank you very much to the Principals, teachers and students at Thuwal Intermediate and High School for Girls for the warm welcome and especially the students’ willingness to engage with their guests and the projects. Thank you to Aliya, Jana, Rumaysa, Sabarisha and Zainab for your careful preparation and great teamwork.
Zainab Harakeh, a G11 student from TKS that attended the Thuwal Schools Workshop had this to say: “We were amazed by their creativity, which guided these Thuwal students in extending their projects and going further by decorating and finding more innovative ways to use the old tshirts. We often forget that we live in an isolated compound and that it is essential to reach out to the greater community and to support and motivate wiser environmental choices. At the end of the trip we challenged the girls to take something from home and find a way to repurpose it! Today we challenge you to do the same. Are you up for the challenge?.”
U14 Girls Football
On Friday, February 2nd, the U14 soccer girls excitedly arrive at BISJ, representing the KAUST School for the 2018 RSAC U14 Girls Football tournament. TKS, BISJ, AISJ, YIS, and JPGS took part in this exciting event. TKS won 2 games and drew 3. We worked hard, and the other schools, with older, more experienced and skilled girls, had a hard time getting past the fantastic defense. TKS scored seven goals by ďŹ ve different people. The incredible goalies blocked many kicks and saved the entire team. We thank Coach Andy, Coach Teddy, and Coach Hanif for giving the best coaching and helping us improve our soccer skills. We encourage everyone from 11 years old and up to join U14 next year. By Haadiyah Mohammed G6 Student
U19 Girls Red Sea Athletics Conference (RSAC)
U19 Girl's performed amazingly well at the RSAC (Red Sea Athletics Conference) tournament. The team went undefeated and won the tournament! Congratulations Girls!
PHE Round-up G6 Cricket Many of our G6 students participated in Cricket for their very first time. The Cricket unit is a great introduction to a sport played in over 125 countries around the world, with nearly 10% of the world's population playing it. In our Cricket unit, our students focused on making decisions as part of a team and refining team strategies to help a team be successful.
G7 Movement The theme for our G7 Movement unit is the circus. The students enjoyed exploring how relationships and roles extend their creativity. Move over Cirque de Soleil, we are ready for the big time!
G8 Sailing The G8 PHE students have been investigating the statement of inquiry “Technology controls our relationship with the changing environment” by learning and developing knowledge and skills when sailing. In addition, students were working towards sailing certification, which they can progress further in the future with Coastline staff at South Beach if they want to.
G9 World Sports PHE’s G9 students are introduced to Tchoukball & Handball during their World Sports unit. Tchoukball is a non-contact sport that was developed for people of all shapes and sizes to enjoy. The G9 students focused upon how communication and adaptations might improve team performances.
G10 Scuba Students in G10 will investigate the statement of inquiry ‘the use of technology can impact the function of body systems that support and improve movement within the water’. This unit allows students to develop their swimming strokes as well as gain their PADI certification. What a great opportunity for our students!