Al Sedra Newsletter 2019/20 Issue 19

30th January 2020

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

30th January 2020

P.E. Sports Special Term 1 was extremely busy for the PE department; we have had over 300 students involved in some form of extra-curricular activity, either at break time or afterschool. This has meant we have been able to expand the amount of competitive sport offered to our students, which is fantastic.

We have competed in the School Olympic Program (SOP) and the Qatar United English Speaking Schools League (QUESS) and all GES students have been able to take part in the 8th edition of Fitness at the Farm (FATF). Students have been able to become physically confident through the development of particular techniques, across a broad range of activities.

Students are now becoming aware of their health, and factors that may affect them leading a quality lifestyle.

Fitness at the Farm As I am sure you are aware, Fitness at the Farm took place in November, with over 600 students participating in exercise and working outside of their comfort zone. The aim of this annual event is to provide opportunities for students to take part in a range of physical activities that cannot be regularly offered at school. Students were engaged to say the least; they were intrigued throughout the day with all the new experiences on offer. This event would not have been able to take place without the support of the co-founder, Mrs. Rebecca; I would like to take this opportunity to say ‘thank you’ to her for supporting this event and allowing it to run smoothly for the eighth year in a row.

Boys’ Volleyball This has been a great journey for the volleyball team. Students were given the opportunity to take part in volleyball recreationally in the previous year and were able to show great leadership; they were able to organise themselves into even teams as well as referee the games to a high standard. As time went on, the boys started to enjoy the competitive element of volleyball more and more; they were then convinced to take up volleyball and become the first volleyball team to compete in SOP and QUESS. The students have committed themselves to training and three of the students have now joined their local club, where, each week, students are able to develop complex skills and meet the demand of the environment.

Watch this space as this is the start of something great to come!

The squad includes:

30th January 2020

P.E. Boys Football U19 The QUESS journey started off slowly this season for the U19 squad. However, after finishing as champions last season in the B league, we were optimistic that we were capable of winning the A league this time around. Unfortunately, coursework and mock examination preparation had a significant effect on our squad this season; especially in regards to finding the time to train together. This meant it was difficult to repeat the success of last season.

Nevertheless, we finished the season with a good victory over Parkhouse and it allowed us to finish the season in third place. I am proud of their success as should the team be.

The squad included:

I want to say a special thank you to the boys who have stepped up and helped out the team when needed.

Mr. Tyrone U16 This year the U16 team started the league with an away game against GEMS Wellington. With only 11 players it was a struggle, but this didn't stop the boys from putting on a great performance. The boys started strongly, going a goal up in the first half.

However, due to the lack of subs, the boys did get tired in the second half and conceded a goal. The game ended 1-1; nonetheless, a very strong performance overall. The second game was another away game against Sherborne, who have an incredibly strong team. The boys were very unlucky on the day hitting the post on a number of occasions. The boys lost 4-1, but took a lot of positives from the game. With one draw and a loss we look forward to our upcoming games in the New Year.

Mr. Brendan.

The squad included:

Girls’ Fencing After entering the females into the competition, for the first time, last year, it was evident some of the girls had talent within this area. All students who participated in this event were able to make it into the ¼, semi or finals; AlMaha Al Janahi was awarded a bronze medal in the epee category.

The girls were able to show courage throughout the competition, even though they hadn’t received any training for over a year.

This term we have had a specialist fencing trainer come in weekly to coach the girls and give them that extra push. The girls have committed themselves to this sport and have inspired others to join their journey. The girls are excited to compete this year and they are aspiring for the gold medal!

The squad includes:

It has been an incredible start to the academic year and so enlightening to see so many students wanting to get involved in sport and exercise. This would not be possible without the support of the team coaches and parents. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all those who have helped support our students in being the best they truly can be at their chosen sport.

Upcoming Events: SOP Taekwondo SOP Fencing SOP Basketball SOP Shooting SOP Tennis SOP Swimming SOP Athletics QUESS Football Sheikh Faisal Cup Sports Day We look forward to another sport fuelled term with even more student participation.

Miss. Leah Bernard Hulatt

30th January 2020

INFANTS Pre-School children are learning songs and rhymes about sea creatures. Their favourite song is ‘Slippery Fish’, and in particular the part where all are eaten by a great white shark! They loved the story about the ‘Golden Fish’ who didn’t want to share and soon found himself without friends. They bounced a soft toy fish to the beat of the song ‘Wishy washy wee’ with great enthusiasm and laughter.

Reception children have been on a journey into space. They sang ‘Five little men in a flying saucer’ and ‘Zoom, zoom, zoom’ with great gusto. They loved the song about ‘Popcorn’ and jumped up to indicate high notes and crouched down low to indicate low notes. They played ‘Diddle-dee-diddle-o’, adding a new friend to each verse. They are currently learning a Caribbean song about dumplings, and have enjoyed learning and singing about Caribbean fruit.

Year 1 have learnt ‘Okki-tokki-unga’ and play a clapping game to the song. They have learnt to ‘echo sing’ in ‘I hear Thunder’. They are learning about the difference between beat and rhythm. They have tapped the beat in ‘This old Man’ as well as clapped the rhythm of the words. They have played a circle game to the ‘Clap-clap song’. They have created their own rhythm patterns, using star cards, performing their own patterns.

Year 2 learnt ‘The prehistoric animal brigade’ and performed it with actions. They have created a score of the pitches, using dinosaur footprints, and performed the score as a class. They have listened to ‘Fossils’ and created movements to indicate how the pitches move up and down. They learnt to sing ‘Do, a Deer’ and played the melody on a xylophone. They are now taking a look at materials that instruments are made of and the different sounds that can be created.

30th January 2020

JUNIORS Term 2 in music has got off to an exciting start with students in all year groups developing their keyboard skills. Everyone has been enjoying their music lessons and some have taken music home to practise in their free time.

Year 3 students have learnt how to sing the caterpillar song before learning to play it on the keyboard.

We have found this an easy technique to help us learn the melody line of the song. Learning this piece in Year 3 will help us further develop our music listening and performance skills. In the second half of Term 2, Year 3 students will begin to work in small groups to develop their composition skills. This will bring together everything we have been learning this year.

Year 4 students have really enjoyed learning the well-known ‘Let It Go’ song from Frozen. It has been a challenging piece to learn, however everyone has tried their best and supported each other with the new notes we have been learning. Year 4 will be participating in a band skills unit during the next half term and I look forward to seeing what we can create with such an interesting group of students.

In Year 5 we have been excited to learn the world famous ‘Ode de Joy’. This has been a stirring piece to learn as students become acquainted with new notation. Some students have really taken this unit seriously and have gone above and beyond, playing it from memory. Students in Year 5 will start looking at music theory in the next half term and continue to develop their aural perception.

An exhilarating term for Year 6 students has almost come to an end. They have enjoyed playing James Arthurs ‘Impossible’ on the keyboard, with some students describing it as impossible to play. We soon discovered that if we use certain fingers for certain notes the piece becomes easier to learn. I look forward to introducing these young minds into the wonderful world of musical theatre in the coming weeks. We will be developing our own short plays based around music and acting.

The Junior choir have an exciting term ahead, practicing for the school’s annual music concert. As we are celebrating 25 amazing years of education in Qatar, we only found it fit to begin the term learning ‘How Far I’ll Go’ from the Moana soundtrack. We are excited to learn our new music and make our school proud as we put on a show.

“With music, one’s whole future life is brightened. This is such a treasure in life that it helps us over many troubles and difficulties. Music is nourishment, a comforting elixir. Music multiplies all that is beautiful and of value in life.” – Zoltan Kodaly

30th January 2020

SECONDARY Before the Winter break our Year 7 classes had been looking at environmental habitats, and variations in plants and animals due to those habitats. This was supplemented with a project, on the same topic, which was to be completed at home over the Winter break, and then to be brought into school in January.

The projects have been on display in the school library, as a way of demonstrating the outstanding work our pupils can produce, and they are also a testament to the hard work of our Year 7 students.

Some students produced posters, whilst others had made interactive dioramas and quizzes; all were bright and colourful and they have brightened up the library.

This has encouraged the Science department to take more opportunities to encourage our students to be more creative, and to then share these with the whole school.

HABITAT FACTS: There are five major biomes found in the world: aquatic, desert, forest, grassland, and tundra.

The oceans cover about 70 percent of the Earth’s surface, and form the largest of the world’s habitats.

Life is found at all depths, from shallow surface waters to trenches over 7 miles (11 km) down.

Plants that live in dry climates like the desert have few or no leaves, and may, like cacti, store water when rain occurs.

30th January 2020

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