NTSIS PYP Primary Newsletter (6th January – 10th January 2020)
Transdisciplinary Theme: How we express ourselves
Happy new year! Hope everyone had a great Christmas break! Semester one is almost over. The student led conference will take place next Friday where students take lead to present their learning to their parents. We are excited to see them flaunt their presentation skills and shine!
What a busy week…
Grade 1:
Central idea:
Sound can help us understand the world and express ourselves
Lines of inquiry:
We are almost done with our third unit of inquiry. For the past 2 weeks, we have been busy with our sound explorations and activities. We made pan flutes using straws, learned about sound waves and vibrations through our glass xylophone and humming wine glass experiments, and inquired about the concept of decibels. We even looked at the anatomy of an ear and learned how sounds travel through the ear to the brain. Literacy focus for the week was the digraph “ph” and question words – who, what, when, where, why, and how. Meanwhile, our Math inquiry was about odd and even numbers and fast recall strategies on addition and subtraction.
This week, we will be reflecting on this unit and preparing for the student-led conferences (SLC) on Friday. The students will be discussing their portfolio and selected works to their parents. Please contact the homeroom teacher to book your time slot.
What a busy week!
Grade 2:
Central idea:
Imagination is a powerful tool
Lines of inquiry:
Last week, we continued to use our imagination to create a toy and using simple mechanics. We spent time planning and researching how toys work and the mechanics involved in making them move. We then got to work by selecting the materials available to use and using recyclable goods to create our toys. Boxes, plastic bottles, egg containers etc. were all materials brought from home in order to
complete our tasks.
Everyone was eager and excited, some reflected well and re-evaluated their planning and adjusted their planning in their books as they changed their minds and inquired further to make a better or different product.
Once again, caring was demonstrated by some learners as they volunteered and asked to assist with tidying up the classroom.
In Maths, we have focused on Division, and even though it is a work in progress, overall, a good understanding of the concept has been reached.
We will be bidding farewell to another of our precious classmates as Migan will be leaving us at the end of the week. We wish her well and hope to stay in touch and continue to follow her progress in life.
You will be missed.
Well done to everyone this semester.
What a busy week!
Grade 3/4:
Central idea:
Stories are created and expressed in a variety of ways
Lines of inquiry:
This week, students presented about narrative-writing through their own comic strip. We also read “The Curse of Cogston House “- a mystery story and discussed the spooky setting, characters, plot and conflict. The story came with two possible endings, allowing the children to choose the ending that suits them the best.
Additionally, students discovered the elements of a mystery writing planner: opening, build-up, dilemma, resolution and ending. Then, they wrote a draft of their first mystery story!
In Math lessons we worked on two-step multiplication word problems involving the four operations.
In language inquiry, we continued with the use of prepositions up, over, through, along, past, under, behind, opposite etc. in a sentence. Our week ended with math,
language and spelling short assessments.
What a busy week!
Grade 5/6:
Central idea:
We express and solve problems differently based on different points of view.
Lines of inquiry:
Students learnt a few strategies that can help them deal with differences in perceptions. We also did an active listening activity to learn how our bodies can be used to communicate non-verbally and acted out several dramatic scenarios. We did posters on the qualities of good listening skills as well. We did a review on equivalent ratios and changing ratios. We also learnt about the volume of a solid, unit cube, cuboids and how to draw them out on isometric grids. We learnt about the biography of Captain James Cook and wrote down his life events or episodes including his contributions. We made cell mobiles with six kinds of body cells and clay cell models. We also learnt to identify the parts of a microscope and how to use it. We studied about the differences between animal and plant cells including their parts and functions.
This week, we feature specialist subject: P.E.
G1/ G2
Students have participated in a variety of individual and team games that develop foot-eye/ hand-eye coordination, communication and cooperative skills. This week, students decided to change the structure of game rules in order to provide more challenges and maximize learning time.
G3 thru 6
This week, students spent quality time collecting evidences for portfolio! They were divided into pairs and filmed specific game skills/ concepts learned throughout the Unit.
@Lunar New Year assembly
This was the first of many collaborations to come of the PYP Dragons and Lions. The preschoolers reenacted the story of Nian to explain the mythological origin of the Lunar new year!
