A tale as old as time... Community members were captivated by the school’s magical musical production of Beauty and the Beast this month. This polished and professional show with breathtaking costumes, dancing and singing played to full houses in the University Auditorium from November 10-12. The TKS Performing Arts teachers made the deliberate decision to produce a classic family show suitable for all ages. Community members of every age group including toddlers and young children enjoyed the production in a jovial atmosphere. One young theatre goer, so caught up in the moment, even shouted to Belle on the stage to “go go!” when the Beast set her free. Congratulations to this cast and crew of over one hundred people! It was a production we won’t forget. Some of us will be humming those familiar tunes for weeks to come... (view more photos on page 3)
November 29, 2018
Beauty and the Beast Photos by Catherine Owen, Communications Coordinator 2
From the Director Co-curricular activities are a significant part of learning at TKS. These activities encourage intellectual, emotional, social, moral, creative and physical development. They also give students opportunities to be active in our community and to take their learning beyond the classroom. This, in turn, helps students do better academically and be better prepared for the next stage in their life. Co-curricular encompasses both sports and the arts activities. The school’s latest production of Beauty and the Beast is a fine example. This production took months of practice and preparation including students having to learn their lines over the summer holidays. From an activity like this, students learn about commitment. They also develop time management skills having to prioritize competing commitments and this in turn develops self-esteem. There are lots of other great examples of our co-curricular activities in this month’s Wave, such as Afterschool Yoga and the Choir in Elementary, and the U14 Boys/Girls Volleyball in Secondary. In addition, this weekend we invite all parents and students to come and support the U16 Boys Football team as they participate in their SAIKAC tournament at TKS. We also wish good luck to the U16 Girls team that travelled to Riyadh this morning. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1C5OTb60TlarYZtlg0MRyVuk91EgqnAXw4P2TeU--W2I/htmlview Schedule for Boys Football this weekend is here.
Contents
Counselors Corner
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Beauty and the Beast
PAC Summaries
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4 From Secondary
From Elementary
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8
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From Kindergarten
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Sports News
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In a nutshell: Summaries of November’s PAC meetings
Kindergarten PAC: • KG is looking for two new PAC members. If you are interested please email Justin Somerville - Principal. • Thank you to everyone who attended the KG parent / child breakfast. PAC members received positive feedback about the KG. • Bookweek schedule was shared with PAC. This has also been shared with KG parents.
Secondary PAC: • Discussed exam and learning plans for the Ramadan / Eid periods for the upcoming years. • Personal, Social and Health Education student learning at school is primarily on a physiological level (ie: Cells, Ecosystems, Plants and Inheritance, Systems and Evolution, the human reproduction systems, etc ). We will consider whether more detailed information, including social-emotional aspects of puberty should be offered, and if we can work with other groups in the KAUST community in developing a program. • Discussed students keeping their tests/ examinations. Students generally can take copies, but not always. Specific requests can be referred to the Principals. • Discussed new Special Menu at the cafeteria and the Grab-and-Go corner. Parents appreciated that the improved menu but had questions about price and quantity. We invited PAC members to have lunch at school to evaluate the situation themselves. • Discussed High School Student Exchange program: We do not promote a High School student exchange program because of visa and travel challenges. • Discussed a bus for secondary students living on the Island: PAC suggest if parents want a bus for students during the summer, KAUST Transportation is to be approached.
Elementary PAC: • Overview of ongoing development in mathematics, including discussion of: - New assessments that have been adopted - Arithmetic Grouping - Current process of curriculum evaluation - Grade level goals to be added to report cards • Discussion of school policy and practices related to head lice.
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from Justin Somerville, KG Principal Dear Parents, After reviewing feedback from the KG parent community around access to children’s learning and progress through portfolios, we have shifted to an e-portfolio format to share learning for K1 Single Subject and K2/K3 Homeroom and Single Subject programs. Learning portfolios highlight each child as a unique, capable and competent individual, in all areas (language, cognitive, social/emotional and physical). What is the purpose of a portfolio? For Children - the portfolio is used to reflect on their learning and celebrate their achievements with others. For Parents - the portfolio outlines their child’s learning journey over the course of the year. It gives insight into their child’s school life, their developing attitudes and attributes. Through open sharing of the portfolios, stronger connections between home and school are encouraged. For Teachers - the portfolio is a record of the child’s learning. Teachers use the portfolio to develop a deeper understanding of each child, reflect upon learning and inform teaching practice. https://app.seesaw.me/#/login You should have received information from the school regarding access to your child’s e-portfolio on Seesaw. Please take the opportunity to check out your child’s e-portfolio and to engage in a conversation with them about their learning. They will love it. Kind Regards Justin Somerville KG Principal
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K1 Visits the Coastal and Marine Resources Core Lab
On November 26th and 27th 2018, K1 went on a very exciting visit to the Coastal and Marine Resources Core Lab to learn all about corals from Professor Christian Voolstra. It was such a fantastic learning opportunity for the kids during our ‘Sharing the Planet Unit’. They visited shallow water corals; observing their different colors and learning about their importance to the ecosystem. The children observed deep sea corals as they used their tentacles and large mouths to capture and feed on tiny shrimp. They also visited fish tanks and learned about aquaculture, furthering their understanding of the unit’s three lines of inquiry: living things, relationships between living things and our responsibilities towards living things. Professor Voolstra explained to them that temperature changes in the water can affect the corals. When the temperature gets too warm corals become in danger of dying because they lose their ‘plant friends’ which is his area of research. By Olga Pacheco, K1 Teacher
https://issuu.com/thekaustschool/docs/demographics_2018-19_for_web?e=23587344/65292788
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Kids’ Back-to-School Transition After the Winter Break
Counselors Corner
Start Before the Break
The first thing to do is set expectations. If you take some time, before you loosen the restrictions up, to explain that this isn’t going to be how it is going forward, and why, there will be fewer tears and fewer arguments.
Maintain Some Rules
While we understand that it is “break” time, we should not give up on our house rules. Children need to understand that the house expectations for how to treat others, bedtime and eating your vegetables are still in place.
Extra Screen Time Is A Privilege
Another point to consider is that this is a privilege and taking away some or all screen time is definitely on the table. Especially if kids misbehave, it’s important to get your point across. So, make it clear that this is something that’s up to your discretion, and if they break the rules, they’ll have to deal with the
Start the Week Before
One way to make it easier on everybody is instead of an abrupt change, to ease your kids back into their school routines. Don’t do this just with screens, of course. Do it with sleep schedules, meal times, chores, and other aspects of family life that you need to get back on track. It’s not only good for them, it’s good for you.
Have Plenty to Do
Another way to keep screens from becoming a problem over the break is to have more stuff for kids to do. Especially with free time, make room to do things like play outside, explore the outdoors, go to movies and events, enjoy and explore where you live with your family. Inside the house, make a point of family time. Have family game night, watch movies together, and do all the things you want to do during the year but may not always have time to during the week. by Anna Hughes, Managing Kids’ Back-to-School Transition After the Winter Holiday 27/12/2017 https://screentimelabs.com/managing-kids-back-to-school-transition-after-the-winter-holidays/
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Building Risk Takers
Being risk takers to build confidence and satisfaction are important elements we try to encourage in our students. The K2 student field trip to the climbing playground was specifically for that reason. They were learning as they were playing and improving multiple skills such as hand-eye coordination, thinking processes and problem-solving in order to reach their goals. The trip was very successful and the children asked to go back again. By Safanah Kadi, Communications Assistant Photos By Sezin Bozkurt Mutlu
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K3 TeamWork Coaching
K3 students had been practicing an ongoing unit of inquiry into teamwork. So, they had the opportunity to have a 30-minute football coaching session with Coach Jack and Coach Tim to make the connection about teamwork through sport. The football lesson focused on developing communication skills by listening and following directions, and emphasizing on pro-social skills such as working among a team. By Safanah Kadi, Communications Assistant Photos By Elaine B. Manalastas
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from Jeff Woodcock, GES Principal Student-Led Conferences in Gardens Elementary School This year we have added a Parent-Teacher Conference to our schedule of reporting progress to families. As we announced at the Back to School Night in August, these new conferences will take place throughout the day on Tuesday February 5th shortly after first semester report cards have been distributed. Parents will have an opportunity to schedule conferences with homeroom teachers as well as teachers of single subjects, such as Arabic or Islamic Studies. To accommodate these new conferences, we have moved our student-led conferences from a whole-day event in March to three smaller events within the school year. The first student-led conferences of the year occurred over the past three weeks. During student-led conferences, students use evidence of their learning, including their Seesaw Portfolios, class work and reflections as a basis to engage in discussions with their parents. Students take time in advance to prepare for the conference and the event is an important opportunity for students to develop responsibility and commitment towards their learning. These events are so popular amongst students because they love the opportunity to share with their parents. Our first conferences had a great turnout from parents and the students were fizzing with excitement and pride afterwards.
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Paper Comes from Trees
When answering the question, “How do we make paper?” young students usually answer “Paper comes from trees”. Students in G1 explored the question rephrased: “How is paper made from trees?” and during their time in the library read books, asked more questions, watched CBBC videos and even saw how paper can be made from recycled paper first hand. This teacher/librarian scaffolded research led to students making their own paper. By setting up an activity center in the classrooms, students were able to take turns in making their own handcrafted paper. They used recycled paper from their classroom and a lot of equipment such as a blender, water table, wooden frames and mesh net. Students used the blender to mix liquids and solids to make the paper pulp, and discovered how heavy a framer of pulp can be when lifting it out of water. Students now want to make more paper, and use their paper to create books. Other students were inspired to write instructions for Making Paper, and there are more questions to answer, such as “Is sticky tape paper?” “How is cardboard made?” “How do they make colored paper.” By Vivien Sewell, Librarian. Photos By: Nishar and Shani and their Grade 1SL class 11
The Elementary Choir
The GES Choir are busy preparing their repertoire and rehearsing for upcoming performances. Be sure to hear them at the Musical Celebrations Concert on December the 5th in Building 20. They will be performing a mixture of traditional, modern and original music. The choir recently performed and recorded the new GES all original school song. The song was co-composed by students and teachers at the Elementary School and the choir are the ďŹ rst people ever to sing it . You can listen to their rendition by visiting the TKS Facebook page. By Peter Diglin, Music Teacher
After School Yoga G1 and G2 students have enjoyed eight weeks of yoga as an after school activity. Each week a group of students met to practice yoga, mindfulness and meditation. They improved their self-control, learned new relaxation techniques, practiced their balance and exibility and had a lot of fun! This group of students were risk takers in trying challenging balancing poses, head stands and even partner yoga. It was an amazing eight weeks of yoga practice. Ms. Nee and Ms. Amber enjoyed every minute we spent with this group of yogis. By: Amber R. Hutton, Elementary Teacher
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Book Week December 2-6 is Book Week and we’ve been planning a fun week of activities including an author/illustrator visit. This year we are going to host the author, illustrator and poet Chris White from the United Kingdom. All students in Elementary will have an opportunity to see Chris during a presentation and a follow up workshop. Chris White is an author, poet and cartoon illustrator. Chris' fusion of humor, illustration and the written word has entertained audiences around the world. Chris has provided animations and poems for the BBC and was a judge for their nationwide performance poetry contest for schools. There will also be an opportunity to purchase Chris’ books during the week and view sample copies of his books in the GES library. Information about the books can be found in this form. Chris will be available in the Elementary School Library the following days/times to sign books purchased. • Monday 3:00 – 3:45 pm • Wednesday 3:00 – 3:45 pm
Book Week 2 - 6 December 2018 “One World, Many Stories” Visiting author, Chris White will be in school 2-6 December.
SUNDAY - Dec. 2
MONDAY - Dec. 3
TUESDAY - Dec. 4
WEDNESDAY -Dec. 5 THURSDAY - Dec. 6
Assembly in Gym 8:00 - 8:40 am Students seated by 7:55
Poem in Your Pocket Bring in a poem (original or a favorite from a book) to read to teachers and friends.
Pajama Day Wear your P.J.s, bring your blanket, pillow, and book!
Wacky Wednesday Cook from a book. Click here for more information!
BookMark Swap
Wear wacky combinations of clothes. Back to front, inside out, mixed colors… different shoes/socks Visiting Author Buy books, and have them signed by the author Time: 3:00 - 3:45 Place - GES Library
Visiting Author Buy books, and have them signed by the author Time: 3:00 - 3:45 Place - GES Library
Vocabulary Parade* 8:00-8:40 am Parents invited. Location: Basketball Court
*Listen to the story here. Miss Alaineus info pack here, includes: p9-11 vocabulary list. p13 costume ideas. p14 Costume planner
Visiting Author Buy books, and have them signed by the author Time: 3:00 - 3:45 Place - GSS Library
Daily Activities: 1. DEAR times (times to announced over PA , if your classes missed because of swimming teachers will do a make up time at their discretion) 2. Parent Guest Readers in the classroom: come read to the class, in English, Arabic or another Mother Tongue language - set a time with your teacher! 3. Read in the Arabic tent set up in the GES reception area 4. Bookmarks completed and swapped during class time
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Champions of the Mangroves Reaches a New Audience
The story of Champions of the Mangroves reached a new audience when 180 Thuwal students attended an entertaining and educational morning with an environmental focus at The Discovery Cinema. The visit included three events – a song by TKS pupils, a storytelling session of ‘Champions of the Mangroves’ and a showing of the film ‘A Turtle’s Tale’ with each activity contributing to two of the YLDP’s aims, environmental awareness and increasing English proficiency. TKS students, Jenna, Lucy and Ruby, opened the event with a performance of their song ‘Plastic in the Ocean’, with Lucy and Ruby providing a ukulele accompaniment and Ollie the Osprey, a character from ‘Champions of the Mangroves’, dancing along behind them. The stage was then set for a cozy storytelling session, with two comfy armchairs under the warm glow of lamplight and a bookshelf promisingly full of books. ‘Champions of the Mangroves’, tells the story of courageous creatures living in the nature conservation area near the King Abdullah Monument determined to clear up invading man-made rubbish after a storm. Read to the audience by the author herself Rebecca Kent, who is also an Elementary teacher at TKS. Rebecca was supported by fellow Elementary teacher, Marwa Qadrai. Marwa read from the Arabic translation to ensure the message about protecting the mangroves and keeping the beaches and sea clean was conveyed to the audience. The children were also able to follow the story on the pages projected on to the big screen. Afterwards, each child met Rebecca and Marwa, and received a signed copy of the book. The event was a joint effort between TKS, HSE, Discovery Cinema and Social Responsibility. Thank you to everyone involved. For the full story on the morning and other projects Social Responsibility co-ordinates, see the website sr.kaust.edu.sa. 14
Prayer at GES
At the Islamic department at GES, teachers use multiple pedagogical methods in delivering the learning outcomes. In this unit of our teaching, the main topic was the Prayer and all related to prayers like righteous ways of performing prayers, ablution, etc. We managed to level our teaching according to each grade level so we maximize the benefits of this critical unit. For instance, G1 went through learning how to pray, and we practiced that in action with them. We went to the prayer room and prayed together in a manner that can fully characterize the essence of the unit. G2 practiced prayer through the concept known as Learning from Peers, where we requested the parents to document their children’s praying and we used that as a learning tool to enhance peer pressure among them for a greater benefit, the Prayer. We highlighted what was right and also what went wrong and we together learned a lot from those videos as a group. G3 enjoyed the ‘acting’ practice we performed in class for everybody’s advantage. This helped students understand the vital role of prayers for Muslims and the important function of our fellow Muslim surroundings. G4 practiced a comparison method, where students compare their own work with another student and each would correct each other through sharing their knowledge. Finally, G5 could depend on themselves to create a plan for action. This plan starts with existing awareness of prayer knowledge and finding the gaps where research can be supported with the supervision of the teachers. Prayer is a crucial Islamic Pillar and our wellbeing counts heavily on our relationship with prayers. The Islamic Department is trying to reach a satisfactory level of achieving the stated learning outcomes for a great learning journey at GES. By Rawdhah O. Radwan, Islamic studies teacher 15
from David Tigchelaar, GSS Principal Looking Back • Lots of Arts in November ‐ The Musical Beauty and the Beast performed on 10,11 and 12 November drew positive reviews. ‐ Arts Night, a celebration of student work produced in the Arts classes, took place on 19 November. It is good to see a steady flow of budding artists and new performers on stage. • A group of our MUN students participated in the YMGE conference in Budapest from 21 - 25 November • November is also the time to think of course selections The G9 course selection evening for G8 parents took place on 27 November from 5:30 to 7:00 pm and the G11 course selection evening for G10 parents took place on 28 November from 5:30 to 7:00 pm Looking Forward • TKS is hosting several tournaments ‐ 30 November: U16 SAIKAC Boys football @ TKS ‐ 7 December: U19 SAIKAC Girls football @ TKS • 10 December - Variety Show 4:00 - 5:00 • TKS staff hosts a luncheon for all support staff on 8 December • We look forward to a well-deserved break for students and teachers, starting on 21 December
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GSS Plant Trees
The G10 Biology students are currently working on an ecological unit of how organisms interact with one another. Under the watchful eye of Brian James (Head of KAUST Biodiversity) and Asem Ibraheim with the Golf Course horticultural team, students had the opportunity to get their hands (and feet) dirty and transplanted 20 Tamarisk trees to a new area of the Golf Course. These trees are indigenous/native plants and are well adapted to the harsh weather conditions here. As they thrive, they encourage other local insect and bird populations to thrive too, which helps increase the biodiversity within our beautiful KAUST campus. By: Emma Nason and Mitch Maclarn, Biology Teachers
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Arts Night - November 19
At the first Arts Night of the school year, students performed pieces that they learned or created in Music and Drama classes. There were also presentations by students of their Visual Art work, where they explained their process of developing and creating their final pieces. The idea behind Arts Night is to give an insight into the learning that goes on in our Creative Arts classes in the course of a regular school day. What skills are students developing, and what kind of conceptual understanding are they building that connects to other areas of their lives? It was great to see so many students on stage, clearly enjoying themselves and sharing what they learned in the Arts over the first trimester. Anyone can be a star - but it takes hard work an effort to build the skills… and this is where it begins! The next Arts night will be on Monday, 11 February, starting at 5.15 p.m. 18
GSS Visit to Volvo & Renault Trucks Assembly Plant
The G11 and 12 Physics students at GSS visited Arabian Vehicles & Trucks Industry Co. Ltd., (AVI) the Volvo & Renault Trucks Assembly Plant in KAEC. The purpose of the trip was to enrich students’ curricular experience and enable them with a first-hand Physics encounter outside of the classroom. Students had the opportunity to engage in the enrichment program offered by AVI and we look forward to students’ proposals/ideas getting further recognized. By Myriam Abdulbaki
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G11 Visit KAUST Library
The G11 class was given the opportunity to go to the university library to learn how to use all the resources that KAUST provide to their community of researchers. With the help of Mr. Stephen J. Buck, we were taught how to navigate through these resources effectively and efficiently and went through exercises in order to refine our skills. As our second last year in high school, it is a very vital year with the need for high-quality resources. We were excited to be introduced to the amazing online resources that KAUST has collected throughout the years. Being able to use these resources for our DP school work is an absolute privilege and we are all extremely thankful. By: Xarlasht Khan, G11 Student
Visit to the Greenhouse At the conclusion of the units on water, soil, food and terrestrial production systems, the G12 Environmental Sciences and Societies (ESS) class visited the KAUST greenhouse accompanied by their teachers Dr. Danaher and Ms. Rhodes. They were welcomed with an informative lecture by Professor Tester on some striking initiatives and research taking place at KAUST. Students were astonished by the research conducted on growing salt-tolerant tomatoes and the use of hydroponics as a more efficient technique for crop growth. The seniors engaged with Professor Tester and asked inquisitive questions which allowed to further their understanding of the information they learned in class and its application to real life issues around the world. Afterwards, in the greenhouse the students observed the multiple experiments being carried out and learned about the method of grafting - a horticulture technique where the tissues of plants, specifically the scion and the rootstock are joined together to grow a plant with attributes that don't naturally occur together, for example sweet and salt tolerant tomato crops. Being able to experience and apply their understanding of real-life scenarios allows students to make connections and encourages dynamic thinking. By Zainab Harakeh, G12 Student
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Making Math Meaningful (and Fun!) Mathematics requires learners to actively construct and build new knowledge on existing foundations. While some students thrive on this rigorous thinking structure, others may have trouble keeping pace. When this happens, some students can fall behind in their knowledge and then become discouraged when they don’t understand the material in their class. Seeing their peers adapt easily when others struggle can be disheartening, and students may lose motivation. To help change this mindset, TKS offers an after-school club for Mathematics. Students are welcome to join this after school adventure course! The course runs for about four weeks per grade level and is meant to be a stress-free and fun exploration into mathematical concepts and skills that students will apply in their current units of study in their respective math classes. The course has been running since September this year, and pre and post assessment shows an improvement in overall math performance for the students that attend regularly. We hope this improvement and success continues throughout the school year. If you are interested, please contact your child’s mathematics teacher for more information. By the GSS Learning Support Team
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U14 Girls Volleyball
On November 9th, 2018, two U14 Girls Volleyball teams participated in the RSAC tournament that took place at TKS. The RSAC tournament was a wonderful opportunity to see how much the players progressed over the five weeks. Not only did everyone improve significantly during the season, but the girls also improved on the day of RSAC. The girls showed great sportsmanship, stayed positive during all of their games and encouraged each other to play to the best of their ability. Everyone took time to reflect on what worked well during the games and what they could improve. They were also able to find ways to reach their goals. Both teams also communicated well with each other in order to get the ball over the net. But we can’t take all of the credit, the coaches played a huge role in developing our attitude and skills. Coach Teddy, Coach Mahri and Coach Olson put in a lot of time and effort in helping everyone improve and learn new skills. They also helped us stay positive and helped us work together as a team. It has been wonderful to see everyone improve. Overall, the volleyball season this year was a fantastic experience and an amazing opportunity to try a new sport. By Varshini Chandrasekaran, U’14 Volleyball Captain
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U14 Boys Volleyball
U14 Boys Volleyball recently completed it’s season with a tournament at the British International School of Jeddah. We took two teams down to face the rest of RSAC schools. We had a very successful tournament, applying the skills learned throughout the weeks of practice. The greatest thing was to see everyone facing adversity at one point or another, yet playing together as a team, and displaying excellent sportsmanship. Go Sharks! By Frederick R. Olson, Coach
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