Volume 5 4-11-2020
Newsletter of International School Suva
Principal’s Report Greetings ISS Parents, Students, and other ISS Family Members,
Inside this issue:
We are halfway through Term Four of the 2020 school year, and we are sure this will be a historical year that we talk about for some time! I appreciate all the teamwork and cooperation everyone has shown during these confusing and difficult times. I think a crisis sometimes helps us focus on the most important things, in this case our children. What is next? No one knows exactly, but I will make my predictions for the coming 12 months or so. Feel free to challenge my “crystal ball” but I think these things will become trends and to guide us in coming months.
Primary Transition Program Fiji Day Meke Year 2 Market Day Bring & Buy Sales
First of all, I expect a Covid vaccine to be approved and distributed within the coming six months and, assuming it is effective, for that to greatly change our outlook and planning. I expect the vaccine will reduce the threat level over time, and I expect that global systems will move to restore travel, business, education, and diplomacy, perhaps with some new rules and perspectives. I think we will see new cautious optimism and renewed attention to long term goals and dreams.
Arts Day is the Best Day
Secondly, I expect Covid to be a significant factor for at least the next year, but I expect the impact on the school to steadily diminish but not go away entirely. Some programs will be restored as that becomes possible. Of course, a new Covid outbreak could reverse all this quickly! Thirdly, I fully expect ongoing discussion, planning, and response systems in our school, and in all organisations, to make us more prepared for future pandemics. In fact, scientists say that Covid might return in mutated forms, perhaps annually, so we must be more prepared in the future all sorts of health issues.
Year 5 Sailing Program
Fourth, education will embrace technology resources more as part of all programs and we and our children will continue to become better at working digitally and meeting remotely. ISS will continue to strengthen technology resources and access. This development is also in keeping with the Strategic Plan. In other school news, we are making good progress toward opening new classrooms in January for art and science in our new building. Later next year, we will open the new auditorium and invite parents to tour the new building. This is an important step for the school as this will address several long-time needs. The general theme of the new building is student inquiry, creativity, and performance. With this building completed, we will have an excellent meeting and performance area, new science labs, a design lab, and an integrated art area. Another project that we hope to complete in the coming year is a new access road to make coming to the school easier. The access road will create an entrance from Nokonoko Road, safe drop-off zones, and some added parent parking. Until that is done, we request parent support with parking. On the Vere Road side of the campus, the Secondary gate area, we need to avoid any blocking or crowding of local driveways.
ISS Primary Sports Day
Please do not block a neighbor’s driveway even for a few minutes as that has led to ill will and complaints recently.
The next five weeks will be very busy and will include performances, ceremonies, and exams. This is a good time for all of us to focus on our work and to “finish strong” before our long break. Best wishes in these next weeks of trying to do that!
Stephen Cathers Principal/Head of ISS Schools
ISS Junior Sailing Junior Sailing Primary School Student Council
MYP Corner Year 10 Personal Project
ISS Biggest Morning Tea Term Dates
Primary Transition Programs As we near the end of the year we begin the process of transitioning students to their next year level. Most year level transitions do not pose many changes and students can spend one session in the year level above to get an idea of the changes, staff and different social groupings. Other year levels are seen as key transitions and full programs are put in place to ensure the students can transition smoothly to their next year level. At ISS we specifically plan a transition program for our ECH2 to Reception, Year 5 to Year 6 and any individual student where a transition plan is needed. This year our transition program will take place in week 7. Students will have multiple opportunities to experience their 2021 school environment in these year levels. The homeroom teachers will also meet with current teachers to discuss individual strengths. By giving this opportunity to our students we believe that this will set them up for success and aid in ensuring the beginning of school is a positive experience. If your child is in ECH2 or Year 5 you should have received the transition program information from your child’s homeroom teacher outlining the transition activities. ———————————————————————————————————————————–———–
Fiji Day Meke 9 October 2020
By now, you will have all seen the amazing photos of the meke presented to ISS to celebrate Fiji Day 2020, the 5Oth anniversary of Fiji independence. So much work went into the design and performance of the spectacular production. Much thanks to the staff and students who were involved, and vinaka vakalevu to Ms Liew who made it all happen!
Arts Day is the Best Day By Denisha 5H
Arts day, arts day! What is arts day? Arts day sounds fun and sure is. Arts day is the best kind of day. It's got carving, dancing and painting on walls. Here are some of the reasons why arts day is the best day. One of the first reasons is that there's a disco party. Everyone was dancing. I could not spot someone who was not dancing. The best part was that the songs were awesome. We could hear them from the classroom and it was a blast. I loved how the songs were a big hit and we all sang along but the only thing missing was FOOD. This amazing activity was under the art room and also the disco party was under the art room too so when you're done you can go disco. It was painting. Everyone went there, also there were boxes that we would paint on but no one cared about the boxes and did it freely. There was another wall where we would paint freely. I made a love heart and made a painting of a sup sign. Last but not least is the carving. I did the carving last but it was the most fun. I loved how the others took their time. But I just rushed because the bell was about to go but I finished just in time. I had a very messy heart. I wanted to do my name but it would take so long I just didn't do it. I hope you understand how fun it was to have arts day. I wish we had it again and again. Arts day helps me in being good at activities that l have never tried before. Hope you now know that Arts Day is the Best Day.
The Amazing Sailing Experience By Lily 5H
If you did not know the Year 5 did sailing. It was an amazing experience for us even though not all of us came. I will explain more about how we felt during sailing. Firstly, when we heard about sailing most of us reacted to it surprisingly. We couldn’t wait for sailing, especially the students that haven’t sailed yet. We were told that sailing would start at Week 2 but sadly it would end at Week 4. Some of us were too scared to sail but they were risk-takers to join. It was the week where we could start sailing. Our first lesson was to capsize the boat. I am pretty sure that some of us were scared to capsize it at first, but when we kept training we got confident. We swam back to the yacht. We were all complimenting about how fun it was and that we wanted to do it again. Next we got to sail. I personally was scared if the sail would hit my head. Although we were excited to sail around the yacht. We worked together as a team of two in order to sail. We weren’t very happy that it would end all of a sudden, but we enjoyed our time learning how to sail with Mr Legaz teaching us.
Primary School Student Council By Leo Kruger 5L The student council is still in action. We believe that our job as council members is to encourage and represent our school students. Issues and ideas were raised and have been discussed within the council meetings. We didn’t have a meeting during distancelearning but that's only because we didn’t have any issues or ideas, as the only issue must have been technical problems. The student council has been a great success for many of us. The members of the student council have accomplished many great things. The council has also changed a bit over the past two terms, and some of our fellow members have left the council due to COVID-19. Since some members left, we have recruited new members to join us. These people are, Eden Jezewski (representing Georgina Cullen), Aaisha Patel, and Addison Wood. The members that have been here from the start give a warm welcome to you. A couple of the issues have been discussed with Ms Becki, and she has worked on them to address the needs that students have brought to the council. Another big thanks to Ms Becki for being a huge support for the council. In these pictures, there are just some of the successes that the council have achieved - water dispenser for level 3 and boards installed to stop balls falling down to secondary. In conclusion, the council is still waiting for any challenges to face. And students, if you have any ideas, concerns, or issues to improve the school please contact your student council representative that’s in your class. And I personally would like to thank you for taking the time to read this article.
ISS Primary Sports Day By Faith Khelan On September 11th, International School Suva primary students had their sports day. The activities were long jump, running, throwing and many more events. On the day everyone participated in every event. The names of the 4 sports houses were Iguanas, Kiwi, Eagles and Kangaroos. Iguanas were red, Kiwi were blue, Eagles were yellow and Kangaroos were green. House teams worked together. Students cheered their chants saying, “Go Iguana or Eagles or Kangaroos or Kiwis. Go.� I thought it was a good idea to do sports day because you will see students working as a group and cheering for each other. Whenever someone is down they cheer them till they feel good. When someone comes 1st, 2nd, 3rd they would feel great. You could see joy on their face. After sports day we had assembly and we got to see who was the winner. The Head of Primary, Mrs Becki, showed pictures of us playing as a team, presented certificates and after that it was the time to see who was the new winner out of the 4 houses. We had a drum roll and then Mrs Becki screamed out the new winner and the new winner was Kiwis, they screamed for joy and jumped with delight. I think it is good to do sports day every year because it improves your physical and mental health.
MYP Corner October 2020 Dear ISS Community, Welcome to MYP corner. The purpose of these articles is to share news and developments relating to the MYP program both here at ISS and in the wider IB community. By the time you read this the Year 10s (MYP 5) will have completed their Personal Project journey with Year 8 (MYP 3) having completed the Community Project. According to the IB, Projects allow ISS learners to;
participate in a sustained, self-directed inquiry within a global context generate creative new insights and develop deeper understandings through in-depth investigation demonstrate the skills, attitudes and knowledge required to complete a project over an extended period of time communicate effectively in a variety of situations demonstrate responsible action through, or as a result of, learning appreciate the process of learning and take pride in their accomplishments.
What will students learn through the MYP projects?
MYP projects involve students in a wide range of activities to extend their knowledge and understanding and to develop their skills and attitudes. These student-planned learning activities include:
deciding what they want to learn about, identifying what they already know, and discovering what they will need to know to complete the project creating proposals or criteria for their project, planning their time and materials, and recording developments of the project making decisions, developing understandings and solving problems, communicating with their supervisor and others, and creating a product or developing an outcome evaluating the product/ outcome and reflecting on their project and their learning
I have been extremely impressed with the diversity and quality of the projects produced, highlighting the multitude of passions evident in our student body. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Ms Shelly Forbes and Ms Tanya Ulacake for all their hard work in guiding these students through the process. Year 9 students have already begun the initial stages of their Personal Project journeys. I am really looking forward to seeing the results of these projects next year. Luke Ramsdale - MYP Coordinator
MYP (Middle Years Programme) Showcase ISS MYP students should be so proud of the fantastic showcase of their hard work. What a display of ingenuity and creativity! We saw the Science Fair displays by Middle School students, Interdisciplary Unit Projects (Maths and Design), Year 8 (MYP3) Community Projects as well as Year 10 (MYP5) Personal Projects. Well done to all the students and staff involved!
Year 10 Personal Projects (MYP5) This week our ISS Year 10 students participated in the MYP Showcase, displaying the products and findings they’ve been working towards over the past year in their Personal Projects. It was so impressive to see what our students have created, and demonstrated the huge amount of talent we have here at ISS. Congratulations must also go to Ms Shelly for her coordination of the project. They were many and varied ranging from poetry, writing books for reading and to help others cook, displaying skills in cooking and art, building a ukuele or a kaleidoscope, making lipsticks or traditional costumes, mat making and weaving and celebrating culture, displaying their passion for a career or travel and more. Here are a few reflections from some of our Year 10 students on their experience: Aurora Sinclair ‘Fijian Food for the Prevention of Diabetes’
It was an amazing experience to have worked on this project, it was so cool to also work with my classmates because when it came to personal project exhibition night we all worked together as one team to pull this off. It was amazing seeing everyone putting up there photos and facts and books and lipsticks and so much more. And I was to surprised at how many people showed up, and I’m so glad people showed up because it means a lot. It's amazing that after working on this for almost a whole year its crazy to think that we are finally done with working on it and now we can relax and be happy and proud of what we did because we all worked really hard on our own projects. When it was time to present we all made sure that everyone was happy with their set up because you have to make sure the set up looks good so it attracts people to come and listen to see what you have made. Even though the people who came were parents it still meant alot to everyone and it was fantastic with all the questions the parents had which was great. So overall it was such a good night and morning and I’m glad it's over but I am going to miss it. I hope everyone had a good night and morning and learnt something new. Thank you for coming and see you next time. Zoe Pratt ‘Travel Guide and Tips’ For the Personal Project my goal was to publish a planned itinerary and travel advice for high school graduates to explore the East Coast of Australia. Planning this trip will give me and other students in my situation an experience to travel on a budget. I wanted to publish a website because websites are very accessible to everyone. This process has taught me perseverance, time management and critical thinking. Learning these skills will benefit me moving into Year 11 and 12.
Kehe Zhang ‘ Chinese style Lipsticks: Zhongguo - Ko Huang My goal is to "make four lipsticks that can express Chinese culture". It was challenging because I had to do all the steps by myself. The audience for my personal project will be people who are interested in Chinese culture, and also people who are interested in lipstick. After my reality survey, I found that most people's understanding of the Chinese style is still limited to the single bright red colour. And my design will give them more awareness of the Chinese style. I am very interested in makeup, which inspired me to want to do my project on Chinese Style Lipstick. I also want to show Chinese culture to others in this way.. It took seven months from the beginning of planning and preparation in December 2019, to the end of production in June 2020. The biggest challenge I faced was the recurring failure in the process of lipstick-making. The wrong proportion of oil and wax would lead to the poor effect of the final lipstick use, so I did many tests. Fortunately, the final work was very successful and the audience gave me good feedback on my presentation, which made me feel very proud. If I did it again, I would make more lipstick in more colours, that can fit everyone.
Abigail Quayle ‘Totitorea - Maori Dance’ Personal project was a good experience, it showed me that I can't handle that much work all at once. Personally I think that I could have done a better job, I felt like I rushed a lot of things. I needed a lot of help and guidance, I got those two things most of the time but by the end of the whole process, I didn't receive as much help from people. I learned to be more organized with my work.
But at the same time I had no idea what I was doing. Especially since I was in NZ at the time, so I could only receive online help.
Overall I had an amazing time learning more about my culture. I didn't know that much about the Maori culture, so this helped me understand where my dad came from and what my culture is all about.
Dewan Mohan “Creating a Musical Album” For my personal project, I had set myself the goal of creating a musical album. A compilation of seven or eights songs that were all original (with the exception of one cover if I was feeling good about it). I had gotten the idea from my friends and family. And far back as I can remember, I've always had a deep rooted love and passion for music but had never tried to express myself through the medium with original pieces. After having thought about it, I decided that for my first actual try, I wanted to have it showcased as my Year 10 Personal Project. Just a challenge I knew would make me get up and actually go do it (I tend to procrastinate on everything unless it really matters). Going into the production of the album, I was totally blind. I didn't know how to record, produce, mix, harmonize, play to a metronome, layer tracks, multi-track or anything. But through my learning and understanding processes, I was able to learn all the skills previously mentioned and many more. Skills I will no doubt carry on with me as I continue to create my own music and develop a unique sound. Skills, I would never have learned had it not been for the Personal Project forcing me to learn them. Even if at times the learning process got boring, I just had to suck it up and get it done. I'm quite happy with my product (I still think that it needs a ton more work to be done on it, but oh well. I shall improve it after PP) and think it sounds quite alright. I would also like to thank my teacher mentor Mr. Luke Ramsdale. I definitely would've never ever completed this project had it not been for his constant support and dedication to help me when I needed it most. And I would also like to thank Baylian Saberi and Papanui Liew-Masters for their support and guidance in areas I struggled in (mixing, producing etc.). If it wasn't for you boys, the instrumental on 'Camera Girl' wouldn't sound so fire. My album is available on Apple Music and Soundcloud for anybody who would like to take a listen and throw some feedback my way.
Temalai Paelate “Weaving Pandanus Mat” One of the projects was a pandanus mat with ISS written on it which was presented to the school by Temalai Paelate. She and her family led a traditional presentation ceremony (a wonderful display of Tuvalu culture) and the mat will certainly be treasured by our school.
ISS Biggest Morning Tea ISS Biggest Morning Tea is a fundraiser event where students and parents bake goods which are then sold at a morning tea. Students and teachers buy these baked goods and all the money collected is then donated to the Fiji Cancer Society. This year’s Biggest Morning Tea was organised and hosted by the Year 6’s and Year 11’s which was held on the 30th of October. We had varieties of yummy baked goods on sale and we also ran a 101 muffin flavour competition. The event was a great success. Congratulations to the muffin competition winners: Kye (Year 6), Domino and Haleh (Year 7) and Leona (Year 9). We thank all students, parents and teachers for supporting this event.