October 2021
Saudi Arabia 91st National Day celebrations across the school
Parents support our new KG
Maker Space
New Kindergarten Little
Libraries
New GES STEM Program For Grades 1-5
TKS Launches
Internship Program
2021
Grade 7 students visit
KAUST University Library to know more
about ‘classification systems’
TOK Exhibition was back this year!
#TKSWave
C U R I O S I T Y
INSPIRE CREATIVITY
Contents Page
INVESTIGATE
IGNITE
S O L U T I O N S
4. 6. 8.
Director’s Message 4. Welcome
Counselors Corner 6. Meet the team
From Kindergarten 8. KG Principal Message 10. KG Little Libraries 12. Maker Space 14. KG Rosie’s Walk
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From Elementary
24.
From Secondary
16. GES Principal Message 18. Mother Tongue Language Program 20. GES STEM Update 22. GES Library
24. GSS Principal Message 25. TKS Internship Program 26. Grade 7 Design 30. WISE/Science Internships 34. TOK Exhibition 2021 36. Grade 8 Design 40. Middle School Student Council 41. Water is Life 42. F1 Car Wing Design 43. Grade 7 Assembly 44. Grade 12 Parent Dinner 48. She Can Cup 2021 Results 51. KAUST University Library visit 52. High School Student Council Association 53. NEOM Science Innovation Challenge 54. Saudi National Day
Dear all, What a great start to the school year we have had! While the pandemic still has us adjusting some practices, we are fortunate to be continuing with a robust learning program for all of our students. Not only does this learning program take place during the school day, but this year we’ve been able to roll out a comprehensive co-curricular program as well which takes place primarily after school. If your children did not get the opportunity to engage in these co-curricular activities for this first cycle, I encourage you to register for your SchoolsBuddy account and to be in touch with either Richard Davies in GSS, richard.davies@kaust.edu.sa, or Jorge Rodriguez in GES, jorge.rodriguez@kaust.edu.sa. If you’d like to get more information about our aquatics program, you can reach out to daan.sengers@kaust.edu.sa. Cycle 1 has been a huge success so far with 429 students participating in 34 different activities and clubs in GES alone. We had over 140 students express interest in the swimming program, and in GSS 353 students are currently participating in 35 activities across the co-curricular program areas of Health & Wellness, STEM, Creativity and Life skills, Leadership & Service. sports, the musical, and a variety of clubs and activities? As was recently shared, The KAUST School (TKS) now reports to the Provost. This organizational alignment with the Academic Division of the University enhances opportunities for implementing certain goals in our strategic plan. In the upcoming Town Hall meeting on Monday, November 8, I will have the opportunity to share more information about the exciting projects that TKS is working on this year. While we have much to celebrate, we are particularly excited about the new internship program in the high school, the new STEM enrichment program in GES, and the implementation of the Reader’s and Writer’s Workshop model in KG and continuing up through grade 8. All of these changes are a result of the goals of our strategic plan. In the strategic plan 52% of our goals are related specifically to our academic learning program, 25% are focused on well-being and 23% are focused on engagement. I am pleased to report that 90% of these goals are on-track or ahead of schedule while the remaining 10% are future goals that will be introduced in the coming year. Already a quarter of our goals are in the implementation stage which means as parents you’ll start to see and feel some of these changes. You may see a slight difference in curriculum in areas such as math, English and secondary science as we have now begun to implement our new standards to complement the IB framework. Your children may be enjoying new course offerings, the expanding co-curricular offerings, and/or the focus on social and emotional learning. You will continue to see more growth and opportunities in the coming months and years as more of our work moves into the implementation stage. None of these positive changes would be possible without the incredible dedication of the TKS faculty and staff. These enhancements have come because teachers have used data and adapted the curriculum and instruction where needed. They have stepped forward to offer their expertise in areas outside of the classroom to support the co-curricular program. Our learning leadership team has taken responsibility for ushering through many of these changes and have supported our teams each step of the way. I am truly in awe of everything our faculty and staff do to inspire our students and enhance their learning each and every day. Warm regards, Michelle Remington Director of The KAUST School The Wave October issue
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Director’s Letter
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Meet the TKS Counselors This year the counseling department welcomed two new counselors. Bringing a wealth of experience and expertise, the counselors have been working together cross divisionally to develop a comprehensive school counseling program that aligns with the school's Mission, Vision, and Values. This work has involved creating shared belief statements around student achievement and wellbeing. One of our core beliefs is that learners thrive in an environment where they feel “safe, nurtured and a sense of belonging.”
Who’s who on the team? Kindergarten
Lujain Alafif, KG West Counselor Marhaba! My name is Lujain Ahmed Alafif, and I am one of the TKS Kindergarten counselors. I am a Certified Child Life Specialist, the first person to achieve this distinction in Saudi Arabia. Prior to joining GSS, I worked as a counselor in an international school for students from 4-18 years of age. My role consisted of providing emotional support, fostering positive self-esteem, and counseling sessions. I am excited to be part of the counseling team at KAUST and look forward to meeting you in person.
LaTanya Weaver, KG East Counselor Greetings! My name is LaTanya Weaver and I am one of the TKS Kindergarten School Counselors. This is my first year at KAUST and my 14th year as a Professional School Counselor. I have completed my Master’s in School Counseling. I am originally from St. Louis, MO, USA. Prior to coming to KAUST, I worked in Abu Dhabi, UAE. I am excited about the opportunity to work with students and families within the KAUST community.
Elementary Mahri Wooten, Grade 1 & 2 Counselor Very nice to meet you! I am the G1 & G2 counselor. The students know me as Miss Mahri. I am starting my fourth year at KAUST with my husband, Mr. Wooten (GSS teacher), my son, Ren, and our two dogs. This is my 9th year working as a counselor. I especially enjoy working in the international setting and have worked in Hawaii, China, Peru, and now Saudi Arabia. I completed my Master’s in Counseling Psychology in Hawaii and am a National Board Certified Counselor in the US. Here is a little virtual video introduction of myself. Please come visit me anytime as my door is always open! Mike Vande Loo, Grade 3-5 Counselor Hello KAUST community! My name is Mr. Mike Vande Loo, and I joined the GES counseling team this past school year. I have 17 years working as an international school counselor and five years working in the United States as a school psychologist. I am originally from the U.S., but my family and I arrived at KAUST after living in the Dominican Republic, where my wife Eneroliza is from, and our children Amaya (8) and Zoe (5) were born. We are excited to be part of the TKS learning community! The Wave October issue
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Secondary Adam Kuestermann, Middle School Counselor (6-8) Greetings Everyone, I am Mr. Kuestermann (AKA; Mr. K or Mr. Adam). This is my second year at TKS and my 23rd year working as an international school counselor. I am part of the GSS counseling team, and I help to support our middle school students during what can often be quite a challenging period of personal, social, and emotional development. I am here with my wife Lailatul who is from Malaysia, and my daughter Bella who is currently enrolled in KG2. We arrived in October last year from South Korea, and we are thoroughly enjoying being a part of the KAUST community. Tara Madrigal, Grade 9 - 12 Counselor Hello everyone! I am so happy to be a part of the KAUST and TKS community. I am Tara Madrigal, and I am part of the GSS Counseling team, working with students in Grades 9-12. This is my 9th year as a school counselor and my 17th year in education. I have spent my entire career working with adolescents as a teacher and school counselor in the United States and most recently, Cyprus. I have my Master's in Counseling and am a National Board Certified Counselor in the United States. I am passionate about helping young people navigate the challenges of adolescence and look forward to partnering with you to help our students find success. Brett Bowring, College Counselor Greetings. I am Brett Bowring, and this is my second year with TKS, with this year seeing my counseling role transition into that of College Counselor. This is my 19th year working in the education field and 12th year working in international schools. Having started the first seven years of my career in California, I then made the international move by relocating to Jeddah to work at the American International School of Jeddah. After six years in Jeddah, I then moved to Turkey, where I met my wife and started my family. My wife and I are thrilled to be here in the KAUST community with our two-year-old son. I look forward to helping students and families learn more about university options and encourage you to contact me with any questions that you may have.
The Counseling Service at TKS By Kristel Solomon Student Support Director The Counseling Team works collaboratively with all TKS faculty to foster an inclusive, holistic, and developmentally appropriate school environment that supports the school’s aim of creating a safe and thriving environment, where student’s social, emotional, and physical well-being is nourished. This is achieved through the delivery of comprehensive, age-appropriate, and culturally sensitive social-emotional skills lessons and the provision of individual and small group counseling, individual and group academic and college counseling, student and family transition support, and school programming support. Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) is the process through which students acquire and effectively apply the requisite knowledge, attitudes, and skills to understand and manage emotions, set and achieve positive goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain positive relationships, and make responsible decisions (Casel, 2017). TKS has adopted the CASEL model of social, emotional learning. This ‘Ecological Model’ of support seeks to develop emotional literacy through curriculum and instruction, school-wide practices and policies, and family and community partnerships, which all interact together to provide SEL opportunities for development. 7
Note from KG Principal Tiffany Hill The school year is off to a brilliant start in TKS Kindergarten! The beginning has been filled with positive energy and attitudes, creativity, and innovative thinking demonstrated by children, parents, and TKS educators. We have all settled into our new routines, structures, and schedules and are so happy to be here. What a wonderful experience for all of KG to celebrate our host country's national day together, raising the Saudi flag, sharing traditions, and creating art. We would like to take this opportunity to introduce you to our Islamic Studies teacher Dena Akeel and our Arabic Teachers Wed Al Sulaimani and Afnan Abdu. You can learn more about Dena and the KG Islamic Studies program here. You can learn more about our Arabic programs with Ms. Wed in West and Ms. Afnan in East at these links. This school year the Kindergarten is excited to bring back our Parent Education Sessions. In September parents joined our first session of the year, Positive Parenting, which was a wonderful opportunity to work together to build a shared understanding of the language we use with children to encourage, build trust, and guide. This session was hosted by our KG Counselors Lujain Alafif and LaTanya Weaver. Information about our counselors and our program can be found here. If you weren’t able to join us a video recording of the session is available here. Our KG Parent Session in October was focused on Nurturing Lifelong Readers and how literacy skills are developed in the early years at TKS. This session showed how the newly adopted standards support the teaching and learning of literacy throughout the Kindergarten and beyond. On October 12th we celebrated the end of the first quarter with face to face Parent-Teacher Conferences. PTCs are a wonderful opportunity for parents and teachers to connect one-on-one to dialogue about how we can all support student learning and development. This helps strengthening our school home connections. The Wave October issue
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Kindergarten Little
Libraries
By Elaine Manalastas & Candace Taylor-Weber KG Information & Digital Literacy Coaches It is very exciting to see many children using our new little library spaces to borrow books for home use! The two little libraries in each KG building have increased the access to reading materials for our young learners to enjoy. "Wow! There are lots of books here!" "There are so many books I love." Bella, K2 Noel, K3 "The books are beautiful to get." Aavya, K3
"Ten! I'm bringing home ten books!" Owen, K1
"I can't pick. I like them all." Freedom, K1
"I always read at home. I like bringing home books!." Gonzalo, K3
Students may keep the books for as long as one week, which should always be transported in their library bag. For more details please refer to the library website.
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Wow!
There are lots of books here!
There are so many books that I
love!
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Maker Space
By Tasha Cowdy and Elaine Manalastas KG Teachers KG is excited to launch our Makerspace at the end of October. A Makerspace is a place that encourages learners to explore their interests, learn to use tools, and engage in hands-on projects while collaborating with adults or their peers. Students will learn important socio-emotional skills as well as critical thinking skills related to science, technology, engineering, and math. At TKS we endeavor to expand learning opportunities by utilizing resources available in KAUST. We would love to have our parents support this exciting project throughout the year by regularly dropping off your contributions in our centrally located spaces in the East and West buildings. Our aim is to curate reusable materials to inspire creativity and support inquiry for all the children in Kindergarten.
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KG Rosie's Walk
TKS Kindergarten Students get Active with Literature
By Zachary Smith KG PE Teacher
Students and teachers in the TKS Kindergarten have been collaboratively exploring a new physical and mental space for learning: a Conceptual PlayWorld. A Conceptual PlayWorld is an imaginary scenario created by an educator where young children are invited to go on imaginary journeys, meet and solve challenges, and learn concepts – all while playing. The idea has been pioneered by Professor Marilyn Fleer from Australia's Monash University. In the TKS Kindergarten's PlayWorld, students have been invited to learn about and physically explore the story Rosie's Walk. In this story, a hen goes on a walk through a farm, heedless of a fox trying to catch her, which he can never quite accomplish. The book offers different roles for students to play and uses a variety of directional language terms that are essential for both academic and physical learning, such as across, around, over, past, through, and under. The TKS Kindergarten PlayWorld is unique in that it is a physical space that has been transformed into the book's setting, called Rosie's Farm. As they replicate Rosie's Walk, students traverse a number of obstacles, such as climbing over a climbing structure, lifting buckets filled with bean bags via ropes and pulleys, and crawling through tunnels.
The Wave October issue
The PlayWorld is a hybrid space - it is a K1 PE classroom, as well as a space that students can visit with their classroom teachers outside of PE time. Since the beginning of the year, students have been actively engaged in learning about Rosie's Walk in Rosie's Farm. Along the way, they have been picking up concepts related to narrative structure, characters, sequence, perspective, and directional language. They have also been exercising their bodies and developing physical skills that are essential for life and learning. Most importantly, they have been developing a love for literature and movement!
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Exploring the connections between Literacy and Physical Education
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Note from GES Principal Jeff Woodcock While school is not quite back to normal, we are very fortunate at GES to be getting closer and closer to normal for students. We continue to add more experiences and opportunities that were present prior to the pandemic. After nearly 18 months, Gardens Elementary School was so excited to resume our After-School Activities Program in September. Jorge Rodriguez is the newly appointed activities coordinator for the elementary school, and he has worked tirelessly to develop a comprehensive program that offers multiple opportunities for all students in the school. This is an amazing accomplishment given the constraints the program faces due to COVID-19. There are still many restrictions in place that limit the ability to mix cohorts of students together. Therefore, Mr. Rodriguez has required many more activities to be offered that will allow all students to participate in the program. A key element to the success of the program is teacher and staff volunteers, who lead the activity program alongside their other responsibilities. The cycle 1 program, which began in September, includes 429 student participants enrolled in 34 different activities across the grades. A significant addition to the program this year has been the inclusion of many STEM-based activities. Adding more STEM-based opportunities for students to participate in as part of their school experience is part of the school’s strategic plan. We are pleased to add Sarah Kennedy to our elementary activities team. The school appreciates volunteers from the community to support this program. Parents are welcome to contact jorge.rodriguez@kaust.edu.sa if they would like to offer or support an after-school activity in the elementary school. The Wave October issue
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The GES Mother Tongue Language program has been in operation for seven years now. This program provides students at TKS with the valuable opportunity to be tutored in their Mother Tongue languages during school time or after school. Current languages being taught at school to native speakers include French and German, with more language options currently being developed, including Hindi and others. We are currently seeking tutors who are able to provide Mother Tongue language tuition for the following Mother Tongue languages: Spanish Tamil If you are interested in providing tuition in the above languages, or wish to provide tuition in another language, or just have any queries about the Mother Tongue program, please contact Andrew Wright at andrew.wright@kaust.edu.sa. 18
The GES Mother Tongue Language By Andrew Wright Mother Tongue Language Coordinator
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GES STEM Program Update By Derek Halverson GES STEM Enrichment Teacher The Gardens Elementary School’s new STEM program will see students from G1-5 participating in a variety of engagements related to Science, Technology, Engineering, and Maths over the course of the year. With this being the first year, Mr. Halverson and his students have been busy testing and trialling a variety of programs and equipment over the last few weeks, and they will continue to do so over the coming months.
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Students have already engaged with sound recording, video editing on both iPads and MacBook Pros, coding, the design process, and more. Younger grades are working on building an understanding of algorithms and coding via BeeBot robots. Grades three and four are moving into studying forces and will work towards designing and building a variety of models that will help them to build their understanding of physics around them. Grade five are beginning their robotics and coding journey via Lego Spike robotics. Stay tuned for more as the program grows and develops over the year!
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GES
Library By Wendy Foreman GES Library Media Specialist
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Now that the GES library has added three additional open library times for students each day, our circulation numbers have skyrocketed! The addition of these times has been essential, as classes are on a fortnightly rotation and don’t have a scheduled chance to come to check books out each week. Students love the flexibility of knowing that they don’t have to wait between library lessons, and are taking advantage of the opportunity to come in, grab a hold, or simply pick up the next of a favorite series as soon as they are done with the one they are on. Our stats for September show that more than 5000 books have circulated in the first full month of school; a thousand checkouts more than the same month period in 2019! Click here to see our new-and-improved flexible library schedule, and remind your students to come in and see us whenever they can! Scholastics Order Please note that the GES Scholastic book order closes on October 7 (the date in last week’s GES communications was incorrect), so you still have a few days to place your order. Click here to be directed to Scholastic’s extensive online catalog, and happy shopping!
Note from GSS Principal David Tigchelaar New initiatives
This year, the secondary school is implementing a range of new initiatives that were developed last year. The initiatives include: New High School courses like Instrumental and Vocal Ensemble, Community Sports Leadership, Engineering & Innovation, Media Production & Communica tion, Woodwork, and Robotics Systems Design The TKS Internship Program (TKS IP) A clear distinction between TKS courses and SL courses A Study Skills course for all G6 - 10 students New approaches for the Middle School A stronger focus on student wellbeing and student life (e.g. implementation of class meetings, integration of LIfe Skills in PHE, grade level assemblies) A consistent application of the attendance policy We believe that these initiatives will improve the quality of the school. We have set up systems to monitor the quality and fidelity of the implementation of these initiatives.
Parent Advisory Committee
The first PAC meeting took place on 19 September. After a presentation by the Director, the PACs of the different divisions met. The GSS PAC members for this year are Ya Xue, Mani John, Maaz Gazdar, Hadi Zulfiqar, Aamir Farooq and Sadiqa Siddique. Sadiqa will be the GSS PAC liaison with the school. Before each PAC meeting, the PAC members will solicit input from the parent body on issues to be discussed with the GSS principals. In the first meeting, we asked the PAC parents what they believe are topical discussion items for the next meeting coming up. The following items were brought forward: the implementation of the Attendance Policy, the purpose of the Flex Block, the Talent and Enrichment Program and the school’s communication strategy. The school will prepare presentations for each of these topics and ask the parents for input in the meeting.
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TKS Internship Program By Hamza Khasawneh Grade 12 Student Edited by Ms Azra Hanif TKS IP Coordinator The new academic school year has begun and this year, TKS launched their new Internship Program, “TKS IP”. Students at the KAUST School take the IB Diploma which is known for its academic rigour. The creation of the internship program was created to allow students to apply what they learn in the classroom to the real world as well as learning new skills. The program is an opportunity for students to transfer the skills they have learned in school while learning about future jobs they may look to pursue. A group of 17 responsible students are partaking in the inaugural year of the program. The students are participating in a wide variety of jobs. A group of students are working with the KAUST IT Security department, helping them aid the community in becoming safer online. Within the school, a Grade 12 is working as a teacher assistant in the Elementary school. They are teaching younger students a wide range of topics in coordination with their homeroom teacher. A student from Grade 11 is teaching a gymnastics class with Recreation in the Racquet Club. While the program has just started, students from TKS are making an impact within our community through their new jobs. The full list of departments providing internships are: Human Resources IT Security KAUST Smart Marketing and Communication Social Responsibility Recreation TKS Elementary School Core Labs Innovation & Economic Development
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From this wide range of opportunities, students are exposed to different experiences through which they are developing many skills. Samuel Paterson, working with Marketing and Communication is looking to develop his technical skills by getting “more experience with video editing software, such Adobe Premiere Pro”. On the other hand, Sanaa Ejaz, working with Social Responsibility wants to learn “how you are supposed to work in the workforce”. Sierra Remington, who is teaching the aforementioned gymnastics class, wants to develop her experience as a gymnastics instructor so she can get a “good and fun college job”. While some students are focused on developing their skills and others want to plan for the future, the learning done in a real-world setting is a tremendous way for them to tie in the classroom to the business world. While the program has only been running for a short period of time, many students have learned a lot already. Youssef Elhagrasy, working with IT Security was shocked when learning how much information people have on us based on our digital experiences. Zayd Masry, also working with IT Security came to the conclusion that “information about yourself is valuable”. Hussam Alghamdi, working as a Teacher Assistant, learned about the vast differences “between ‘learning’ and ‘teaching’”. Throughout the duration of the program, no doubt learning will continue. Undertaking this journey requires a lot of courage and commitment considering the already busy schedule the Diploma students juggle. In the future, the TKS IP program aims to expand to allow students to continue making an impact across the Kaust community whilest learning about the real world and enriching the classroom learning. 25
By Matthew McEwen MYP Design Teacher Students have been working on their first Design Project called Scratch Games in which they will code their own original interactive video game. They are doing research in Adobe Illustrator to learn how to create their own characters and backdrops and learning how to code game elements using Scratch coding through tutorials and mini-game projects.
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Grade 7 Design Scratch Games Exhibition
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Students created, presented, and evaluated their games in a variety of ways including asking family members to help assess their project. Students celebrated the completion of the project by having a video game exhibition in the Flag Pavilion in which Grade 6 and other curious onlookers were invited to get a chance to play the games they have created.
The Beguiling Beauty of Biology
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Picture above: Bacteriophage
By Emma Nason Head of Science Who would have thought that the biology of the microscopic would be so beautiful? Professor Ivan Viola, along with Ph.D. students Roden Luo and Ngan Nguyen and Research Scientist Ondrej Strnad from the Nanovisualization Lab at KAUST University, have been examining the structural biology of several large proteins complexes. TKS Grade 11 & 12 students John Winfer, Aeliya Syed, Paul Ekers, and Leon Thistle have been privileged to have worked with this world-class team as part of a WISE internship. This incredibly unique opportunity to work with a university-level research laboratory is one of the many ways in which TKS expands and elevates learning opportunities for students through our partnership with KAUST University.
One of the complexes being studied is the bacteriophage. A bacteriophage is a virus that infects bacteria. It has an other-worldly construction that is more akin to a spaceship! The ‘legs’ allow the virus to ‘land’ and attach to the surface of the bacterium. The ‘body’ is built using repeated protein subunits generated with stunning icosahedral symmetry. This body contains the genetic information needed for viral replication that gets inserted into the bacterium. Other scientists from around the world have solved the atomic structure of the individual proteins of the bacteriophage - known as T4. Ivan and his team, along with the TKS interns, have now used the atomic level data to build up a 3-dimensional model of the T4 using an in-house modeling tool called MesoCraft. TKS students have not only had the ability to brush shoulders with the top-level academics but have also gained high-level skills that are not normally available at school. By utilizing resources available at KAUST, TKS provides a more personalized, empowered, and collaborative learning experience for our students, which will pay dividends as they enter their adult workforce. View full project details by Deng Luo, Ph.D. Student, Computer Science at KAUST. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbQZ0acRGbA https://www.nanovis.org/T4-model.html
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Celebration of knowledge Theory of knowledge (TOK)
By Rodrigo Telles Head of TOK On September 20, we had our first-ever G12 Theory of Knowledge (TOK) exhibition at The KAUST School. The TOK course asks students to reflect on the nature of knowledge and how we know what we claim to know. The exhibits included three artifacts chosen by the students that represented their own interpretations and extrapolations of how knowledge can be represented, in the world through one of the thirty-five TOK prompts.
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It was an evening of deep reflection, meaningful conversations, joy, and pride. The atmosphere was delighted with the piano music played by Kai Ng from our Grade 10 cohort. Families rejoiced, and the TOK department and The KAUST School community couldn't be more proud of the level of sophistication and depth of thinking from our graduating class of 2022. Make sure to experience our next exhibition in June, 2022.
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By Matthew McEwen MYP Design Teacher Students have been working on their first Design Project “Getting Organized” in which they created and printed a 3D model to help organize themselves better. Students needed to find a location or items that needed organizing or sorting at their home or in their room and design a custom product to fit their needs. 36
Grade 8 is “Getting Organized” in Design Class
They researched how to use Autodesk Fusion 360 in order to learn how to create 3D models and learned about the 3D printing process. Students created their models, went through the printing, assembly and finishing process and then presented and evaluated their projects with family and peers. Students held a small exhibition in the flag pavilion to show off their design. Here’s to getting organized Grade 8s!
Middle School
Student Council Association By Michael Wooten Integrated Humanities Teacher This is the first year that the middle school (Grades 6-8) has elected their own Middle School Student Council Association (MSSCA) separate from the high school Student Council. This marks a big shift for our middle school grade level representatives, as they now embark on a role in student leadership that is much more self-reliant and much less dependent on the high school students for direction. We would like to extend a big congratulations and good luck to our inaugural cohort of MSSCA representatives. 6th Grade MSSCA Representatives Elodie Hoffman Lily Woodcock Aisyah Rasyidin 7th Grade MSSCA Representattives Freya Olson Paidi Ward Laiba Shah 8th Grade MSSCA Representatives Kiara Kuwahara Dewei (David) Zhang Muhammad Shaikh
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Water is Life By Beth Lincoln Secondary Teacher Tranquility, respect, and harmony are the central tenets of the Japanese tea ceremony. Tea ceremonies play an important role in the novel Memory of Water by Emma Itäranta, studied in the Grade 12 HL English Language and Literature unit, “The World Without Us”. The novel, set in a future where water is the most valued commodity, plays with ideas of tradition, ritual, and the connection between humans and their environment. The students welcomed to their class KG teacher Mayu Suzuki, who graciously shared her mastery, matcha, and mochi as she taught us the principles, history, and function of the custom. Students learned of the importance of the purity of the water in the ceremony, an idea that permeates the novel and underscores water’s crucial role in achieving a sustainable future for our world.
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Engineering Project: F1 Car Wing Design By Jesse Remington GSS Design & Technology Teacher Students in high school Engineering & Innovation classes have been learning about the Engineering Design Cycle processes and design techniques. Recently, they have been learning about conceptual modeling techniques, including graphical and physical modeling. To apply these skills, they have learned about F1 car wing design and how it affects the performance of F1 cars. Students have researched F1 wing design, created product sketches and technical drawings/models of F1 wings, and are now creating physical models out of cardboard, glue, and paint. The next phases of engineering modeling will involve designing F1 cars in 3D CAD software and testing in virtual simulations. Ultimately, students will construct a physical scale model F1 car body from the CAD design. Stay tuned for more updates about this engineering and innovation design project.
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!
Our First Assembly after 18 months
Grade 7
By Ana Joshi MYP French Teacher
On September 16, Grade 7 students attended an Assembly. It was a time to come together as a whole grade and it is important to stress that this happened after more than 18 months. Assemblies in school have not been authorized since the pandemic started, so, there was great excitement in the air. The assembly started with a Kahoot game with “interesting and fun information” about their advisory teachers and their counselor. This brought laughter and good spirits. This game was followed by each advisory presenting their identities: their logos, their slogans, and their mascots. A lot of cheering, laughter, and enthusiasm were heard all over the Auditorium as each advisory presented what they had prepared. Then, we had a music moment presented by Grade 7, organized by Ms. Rita Sabiiti. We ended this Assembly by participating in a word game prepared by our Middle School Counselor, Mr. Adam Kuestermann. It was his ludic way of introducing himself, presenting his role, and showing how he can support the Middle School students. Overall, it was a very positive assembly, with students being cheerful and very sensible at the same time. Our second Assembly took place on the 4th October. This was more of an academic assembly, focusing on the attitudes needed to be a successful MYP student.
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By Louis Davidson Grade 12 Student The Grade 12 Parent-Student Dinner was held on Thursday, September 29. This is an annual tradition at TKS where the seniors express their appreciation towards their parents by bringing in home-cooked food. On this occasion, teachers, parents, and students attended, and a variety of appetizers, main courses, and desserts were prepared by the students. The night was filled with wonderful live music performances, and speeches from the Student Council President, Youssef Elhagrasy, parent event planner, Gayani Newns, and GSS principal, Mr. David Tigchelaar.
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Grade 12
Parent Dinner
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The seniors were reminded about being receptive to feedback as they manage external and internal assessments in their last eight months before the end of the academic year. Finally, letters of appreciation were given to parents by students, making the entire evening one of heartfelt gratitude. An enjoyable event for all, highlighting the love and support that surrounds the Class of 2022 as they come closer to the end of their high school learning journeys. Thank you to the following people for making this evening a success: G12 student organizing committee - Abigail Mani, Hamza Khasawneh, Louis Davidson & Vyoma Shah Music - Mr. Eduardo and the musicians AV Support - Mr. Mohammad Alshanteer Other support - Ms. Hanif, G12 Team Lead, and Ms. Tasneem Alsharif, Office Coordinator.
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She Can Cup Women’s Football Tournament Results
2021
By Andrew Wright and Wedyan Babatain During the summer, KAUST hosted its first-ever women’s football tournament on July 2nd, the 2021 She Can Cup! Three teams participated in the event, including a TKS Sharks representative team with players from grades 5-12, KAUST’s own Magpies Women’s Football Club and Miraas Jeddah, who finished second in Jeddah’s inaugural 2019 Women’s Football League.
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Miraas Jeddah won the inaugural edition of the Cup, while TKS Sharks finished second and the Magpies third. Pearl Wright (G11) top-scored for the Sharks, while fellow Shark Haya Abugosh (G7) won the Best Tournament Goalkeeper award. Further information about the tournament can be found at the following link.
The tournament was organized by Wedyan Babatain in conjunction with Graduate Affairs and the Students for Sustainability group. Thanks are due to Wayne Bartelink for refereeing all the games and HSE for helping with safety and logistics. The She Can Cup is part of a grassroots movement by the Saudi Sport For All Federation promoting women’s empowerment, and spreading awareness among girls and all members of society about the potential and competence of women. If you are a TKS student who is interested in playing for the TKS Sharks teams, contact Andrew Wright at andrew.wright@thekaustschool.org. If you are interested in playing for KAUST’s Magpies Women’s Football Club, contact Wedyan Babatain at wedyan.babatain@kaust.edu.sa.
The Wave October issue
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Systems for Success
Collaboration with
KAUST
University Library
By TKS Grade 7 Integrated Humanities Team
How do systems help with organization? Is the time it takes to understand a system worth it? How can systems and processes help someone achieve goals? Students in Grade 7 Integrated Humanities explored these questions during their first unit of the academic year: Systems for Success. Part of this exploration was how to access and use the TKS library. Students completed a mini guided inquiry about the Dewey Decimal System, used at the TKS library, and then visited the KAUST University Library to learn about a different classification system: The Library of Congress. Catherine De Levay, TKS Library and Information Specialist, and KAUST University library specialists, Ali AlQahtani, Mamdoh H. Aljodaibi, Hayfa H. Howaidi, and Jayamika Shah helped students experience firsthand how different systems can help us achieve the same goal - in this case, organizing and locating books in a library system.
To showcase their learning, students considered which systems or processes could make a middle school student’s life easier. They created videos and screencasts to inform and engage their target audience on how to use their highlighted system or process. For many Grade 7 students, exploring beyond the classroom and engaging with KAUST University was a highlight of this unit. We are grateful to interim director Nora M. Alshibani for giving our students this opportunity, and we hope to maintain and build upon this TKS-University collaboration.
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Student Council Association Update By Youssef Elhagrasy President
The Student Council Association (SCA) is back in action. After the recent General Council elections, the SCA is now complete with 8 high school representatives, 9 middle school representatives and 7 executive council members. The executive council members have met with one another since the beginning of the year however, September 29, happened to be the first meeting with the general council representatives. As life begins to go back to normalcy, the SCA has to begin to plan events. Some of these events will be brand new and others will be returning fan-favorites. It all depends on how the democratically elected Executive and General Councils decide to operate in the current school year. Keep your eye out for Teacher Appreciation Day on the 5th of October 2021, as well as more projects that are in the works. It is a pleasure for me to lead the student council for “The Last Dance” (like Michael Jordan) and I hope to have a successful and refreshing year. I am determined to leave a positive legacy at this school.
Executive Council: - Youssef Elhagrasy (President) - Hamza Khasawneh (Vice President) - Karen Rivera (Secretary) - Varshini Chandrasekaran (Recording Secre tary) - Mohammed AlGhaith (Communications Officer) - Cyrille Lery (Action Liaison) - Aabish Imran (Tech Officer) High School General Council: - Judy Masry (Grade 9) - Rosario Gomes (Grade 9) - Elena Ketcheson (Grade 10) - Laila ElJishi (Grade 10) - Hazem Amad (Grade 11) - Sofia Tempone (Grade 11) - Mohaned Althagafi (Grade 12) - Miguel Viegas (Grade 12)
The Wave October issue
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NEOM
Science Innovation
Global Summit 2021
Challenge
By Varshini Chandrasekaran Grade 11 Student Recently, 24 students from TKS registered for the Science Innovation Challenge Global Summit 2021 run by NEOM. Since then, many have been attending a series of webinars and presentations from leading experts in fields such as agriculture, water management, and off-world expeditions. One such webinar was a virtual tour of CERN. During this, students got to watch a live walkthrough of the LEIR, the Low Energy Ion Ring at CERN. Leading this virtual tour was Dr. Sonia Natale, who provided students with wonderful explanations regarding how CERN functions and how experiments are run. Students got a close-up view of how the different beams and particle accelerators at CERN worked and got to ask numerous questions about one of the world’s leading labs. It was truly a wonderful experience for the TKS students, especially those interested in physics. Dr. Natale and her colleague, Dr. Ina Carli, also gave the students invaluable advice about pursuing science as a career. Another interesting webinar was one with Nokia, where students got to learn about Nokia’s evolution through the ages. Much of the youth still think of Nokia as the company that makes unbreakable brick phones. However, this webinar showed them how far Nokia has come since then. They learned about all of the research the company has done into 5G as well as how they are helping other companies and entities with communication and connectivity.
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TKS H
ur of Code
By Donovan Hall Educational Technology Director On behalf of TKS Information and Digital Literacy Team
2021
We live in a world surrounded by technology and we know that whatever field our students choose to go into as adults, their ability to succeed will increasingly depend on understanding how technology works. On the 6th December, Computer Science (CS) week will begin and is being celebrated across the world and this year’s theme focuses on #CSEverywhere. In addition to this thematic focus, an annual feature is Hour of Code. The Hour of Code started as a one-hour introduction to CS, designed to demystify "code", to show that anybody can learn the basics, and to broaden participation in the field of computer science. In the lead up to this event and throughout the week, TKS students will be engaging in various CS related activities, including “unplugged” (without devices) experiences.
How can you support this? Please join us by talking with your child about coding at home, pointing out where it is in their everyday life, and getting them excited to learn more about this at school. The Hour of Code website has many activities that you may choose to do at home. Currently, we are looking for members of our community to visit us, or have students visit you to learn about how CS impacts your work. Are you able to provide hands-on experiences for our students to help them make real-world connections? If so, please contact the team at edtech.coaches@thekaustschool.org.
The Wave October issue
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TKS Celebrates
Saudi National Day 2021 During the week of September 19, TKS celebrated Saudi Arabia’s 91st National Day. All three divisions were buzzing with festivities and celebrations in honor of the beautiful, diverse Kingdom we call “Home”. The week was an opportunity for students and staff to demonstrate their national pride, celebrate cultural heritage, and look forward to the future - Vision 2030. Highlights of celebrations at TKS included showcases of the Kingdom's history, regions, food, clothing, and culture. Students in Kindergarten were introduced to traditional Saudi patterns and created a herd of camels that now walk the hallways. At GES, students engaged in a gallery walk where they learned about the different regions of Saudi Arabia. Traditional folklore songs and dance performances were the highlights at GSS. With help from the talented “AlWafa” performers from Jeddah, students in grades 6-12 learned the traditional “Mezmar” or stick dance native to the Hejaz (western) region of Saudi. Students also got to practice the “Ardah” or group sword dance that has its roots in the Nejd (central) region. It was definitely a fun and culturally informative week for all! Did you know? In 2014, Jeddah city officials celebrated National Day with an unveiling of a 561-foot flagpole which continues to fly the Saudi flag as the tallest flagpole in the world! Yasmeen Ghunaim TKS Advancement Lead
The Wave October issue
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Saudi Arabia “It’s Our Home”
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In September, TKS enjoyed and celebrated a whole week of activities that represent Saudi culture and traditions. Hear from our Leadership Team about what they ‘love most about our home.’ Watch the video here.
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