Al Sedra Newsletter 2020/21 Issue 14

10th December 2020

YOUR WEEKLY UPDATE ON ALL THAT’S GOING ON AT THE GULF ENGLISH SCHOOL

10th December2020

WHOLE SCHOOL We are concluding our assessment week and preparing student reports for the culmination of Term 1. As we approach our final week, we look forward to our National Day Celebrations.

Next week we come together as one state, sharing our pride in Qatar. As a nation we have overcome various obstacles but the nation remained steadfast and united. In doing so, Qatar has become a leader for other nations to follow.

We are also holding our IB Graduation Ceremony for the Class of 2020. More so than ever before, it is so important to celebrate success and achievement. Often we will push our learners and others to continually strive for more. We do this in our efforts to succeed and empower other to achieve, however we must take the time to recognise what has been accomplished. Failing to do so can lead towards demotivation and a sense of hopelessness for young learners. Whilst no one would ever intentionally creates these feelings, it’s important to be aware for the sake of our students. Enjoy these moments with your child and recognize their achievements, whatever they may be. Celebrate their accomplishment and routinely recognise their success. These are the steps we take to ensure every child is able to achieve their personal best.

10th December2020

INFANTS

The students in Infant Learning Support have been very busy and are working hard to develop their reading and writing skills. One of the most important and early skills that students need to learn to be able to read is to have a good understanding of phonic sound and this has been the main focus this term. The students have enjoyed hearing rhymes and following actions to support learning new sounds and are gaining confidence in recognising these.

Some students are beginning to read CVC words as they can blend three sounds confidently and progress next term to reading a greater range of words. It is equally as important for students to have a good understanding of the words they read to create images in their mind and link the vocabulary to other known words.

Several students have been developing their fluency when reading storybooks matched to their ability and are developing their understanding of what is read, by answering a range of ‘find it’ questions. The students are always so proud of their achievements and welcome praise and rewards for their efforts.

Some students have been working on letter formation and recognising the letters within the environment and in books. Some of our younger students have been using play-dough to make the letters and have enjoyed playing games to remember the letter shapes and sizes. A growing number of students have started to write simple sentences about a picture using their phonic skills.

10th December2020

JUNIORS This term in Year 4 Learning Support, we have focused on understanding, manipulating and representing numbers within practical activities using concrete aids and apparatus.

In reading lessons, we have been learning about the 'Reading VIPERS' (vocabulary, inference, predict, explain, retrieve, summarise/sequence). The VIPERS are reading skills that the children need to know to improve their understanding of different texts.

Throughout our lessons, we have followed ministry guidelines and maintained social distancing.

10th December2020

SECONDARY Dear Parents, It has been really nice to see almost all the pupils back in school this week for their assessments. Pupils in Years 7, 8, 9 and 10 have been doing their Key Stage 3 and 4 End of Term Assessments, while in Years 11 and 12 the pupils have been doing their Mock Exams; which will help determine their predicted grades.

The Maths department are expecting some excellent results, as pupils have been working really hard both in school and online.

10th December2020

CONTACT The Gulf English School PO Box 2440, Doha, Qatar Main School: Tel: +974 44578777 Main School: Fax: +974 44861256 Infant Unit: Tel: +974 44886791/90 +974 44886201/93 Infant Unit: Fax: +974 44876821

Email: info@gulfenglishschool.com

Website: www.gulfenglishschool.com