SZPAB Newsletter Volume 6.14

The Sheikh Zayed Private Academy for Boys

SZPAB Community Newsletter Volume 6.14

News and features 2 3

Emirati Children's Day Secondary Electives

5

World Down Syndrome Day

April 11th, 2021

TABLE OF

contents

APRIL 11TH, 2021

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Message from the Executive Superintendent

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Calendar Dates

5

This Week at SZPAB

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This Week in Early Years

13

This Week in Elementary

18

This Week in Secondary

21

This Week in Learning Support

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This Week in VPA

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A Message from the executive superintendent

Dear Parents, We have now marked the one-year anniversary of the first ‘lockdown’. One year ago, we were all faced with a great deal of uncertainty. Closing schools to students presented a huge challenge to students, teachers and parents. We all had a mountain to climb.

One year on, it does still feel as though we are climbing the mountain and we are not sure when we will reach the summit. When climbing a mountain, one can feel exhausted and the summit never seems to get closer. That is the time to stop, take a rest and look back at the view. Look at the part of the journey you have been on and appreciate just show far you have come.

Everyone involved with SZPAB has needed the Spring Break. But, while taking that break, we should all look back on where we were one year ago and appreciate just how much has been achieved. Just how much the children have progressed. Just how much the teachers and staff have kept students on track. Just how much parents have found ways to support their children.

We are not finished with Covid-19 yet but we have all come a very long way. We should be very proud of how well students, teachers and parents have worked together.

So, one year on, I want to thank the students, the teachers and you, the parents, for working together, remaining patient and supporting one another. SZPAB is a community we all need to be proud of.

Yours in Education Mr John Conway

JAN 3RD, 2021

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Calendar Dates April 11th: First Day of Term 3 April 11th: Ramadan timetable will begin April 15th: Ramadan begins (TBC) April 27th: Registration deadline to enrol in higher education institutions in the UAE April 27th: Registration deadline to apply for scholarships to study abroad, under the sponsorship of the Ministry of Education May 12th: Eid Al Fitr (TBC) May 22nd: IELTS Test for Grade 11 (TBC)

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This week AT SZPAB Ramadan Timetable Ramadan Kareem to all our families as we begin to prepare for the Holy Month! Please note, that from the first day of Term 3, students will follow the Ramadan Timetable. This will be available from your classroom teacher, or phase lead.

Timings will be: Student start time: 9.30am Student dismissal time: 1.00pm

2021-2022 Enrolment Re-enrolment for our current students for the 2021-2022 academic year is now open.

Please check your email to complete the re-enrolment form. If you did not receive the link, please email us on registrar@zayedacademyboys.ae

COVID Emergency Response Number Reminder In order to keep our community safe, it is important that you contact us immediately if any student or member of your family contracts COVID. In this event, please call and/or email us at the following: Email: emergency.szpab@zayedacademyboys.ae Mobile: 056-9929433

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This week in Early Years This Week in KG1 In KG1, we will begin Term 3 with Unit 5, "Creatures." This is a stimulating unit of learning for KG1 students in which they can share their thoughts and ideas about a topic that is deeply fascinating to all our young students. In this unit, students will discuss the different habitats and animals we find around the world, namely rainforest, desert, ocean, and savanna. This will feed into our science outcomes as students will be encouraged to discuss the animals and plant life we find in these habitats and why they are suited to live there. Our area of focus in English for this unit is letter name, sound revision, matching initial letter sounds to objects, and helping students create their own writing pieces using their imagination and creativity to build a story where the pictures and dictation match. We will explore the many different habitats through our read alouds, many of which are students' favorite stories. In math, our focus will be to introduce the concept of measurement to our students. Students will learn to describe objects around them according to different measurable attributes such as weight, length, and capacity. We look forward to our exciting new unit of work

This Week in KG2 In KG2, we will begin with Unit 5, "Under Construction." This new unit helps students develop their first concept of "force" and the idea that by playing with forces and thinking about them, we can accomplish surprisingly big things. Students will explore various types of construction vehicles and their impact on our lives by helping push and pull. Students thoroughly enjoy this unit, as there is so much construction happening in the UAE and so much for them to notice when driving somewhere with their families. In English, we will review letter names and sounds and continue learning sight words. We will also introduce long vowel sounds and start blending silent "e"/ CVCE words. In math, we will focus on addition and subtraction within 10, comparing written numbers and amounts using words like "greater than/ less than/ equal to." We will also practice fluently adding and subtracting within five and review composing and decomposing numbers 11-19, counting to 100 by ones and tens, 2D/3D shapes, and describing pictures using measurable attributes. We look forward to the continued journey with our curious learners!

This Week in Arabic ‫ ك‬، ‫اﻟﻄﻠﺒﺔ ﺗﻌﻠﻤﻬﻢ ﺣﺮوف اﻟﻠﻐﺔ اﻟﻌﺮﺑﻴﺔ )ض‬ ّ ‫ﻓﻲ ﻣﺮﺣﻠﺔ اﻟﺮوﺿﺔ اﻷوﱃ ﺳﻴﻜﻤﻞ‬ ‫ أ ( ﻣﻊ اﻷﺻﻮات اﻟﻘﺼﻴﺮة واﻟﺒﺪء ﺑِﻘﺮاءة ﻛﻠﻤﺎت ﺛُﻼﺛ ّﻴﺔ‬، ‫ ي‬،‫ ظ‬، ‫ ث‬، ‫ ذ‬، ‫ غ‬، ‫أﻣﺎ ﻓﻲ ﻣﺎدّة‬ ّ ‫ﺑَﺴﻴﻄﺔ واﻻﺳﺘﻤﺎع إﱃ‬ ّ ‫ﻗﺼﺔ اﻟﺤﺮف وﺗﺤﻠﻴﻞ اﻟﻘِ ّﺼﺔ إﱃ ﻋﻨﺎﺻﺮﻫﺎ‬ ‫ ﻓﻲ ﻣﺮﺣﻠﺔ اﻟﺮّوﺿﺔ‬. ‫اﻟﻄﻠﺒﺔ ﺳﻮرﺗﻲ اﻟﻨّﺎس واﻟﻔﻠﻖ‬ ّ ‫اﻟﺘّﺮﺑﻴﺔ اﻹﺳﻼﻣ ّﻴﺔ ﻓﺴﻴﺤﻔﻆ‬ ‫واﻟﻄﻮﻳﻠﺔ‬ ‫اﻟ ّﺜﺎﻧﻴﺔ ﺳﻴﻜﻤﻞ اﻟﻄﻠﺒﺔ ﺣﺮوف اﻟﻠﻐﺔ اﻟﻌﺮﺑﻴﺔ ﻣﻊ اﻷﺻﻮات اﻟﻘﺼﻴﺮة‬ ّ ‫ِﺼﺔ َﻗﺼﻴﺮة ﺗﺘﻜﻮن ﻣﻦ ﺟُﻤﻞ‬ ّ ‫اﻟﺼﻮر ﺑﻜﺘﺎﺑﺔ ﺟﻤﻠﺔ ﺑَﺴﻴﻄﺔ وﻗﺮاءة ﻗ‬ ّ ‫وﺳﻴﻌ ّﺒﺮ ﻋﻦ‬ ‫اﻟﻄﻠﺒﺔ ﻋﲆ آداب ﺷﻬﺮ رﻣﻀﺎن‬ ّ ‫ وﻓﻲ ﻣﺎدّة اﻟﺘّﺮﺑ ّﻴﺔ اﻹﺳﻼﻣ ّﻴﺔ ﺳﻴﺘﻌﺮف‬. ‫ﺑَﺴﻴﻄﺔ‬ ،‫اﻟﻄﻠﺒﺔ ﺗﻤﻴﻴﺰ اﻟﻨّﺼﻮص اﻷدﺑﻴﺔ ﻣﺜﻞ اﻟﺸﻌﺮ‬ ّ ‫اﻟﺼﻒ اﻷول ﻓﺴﻴﺒﺪأ‬ ّ ‫ أﻣﺎ ﻓﻲ‬. ‫اﻟﻨّﺺ اﻟﻤﻌﻠﻮﻣﺎﺗﻲ واﻟﻘﺼﺔ ودراﺳﺔ أﻣﺜﻠﺔ ﻋﻠﻴﻬﺎ وﺳﻴﺤﻔﻆ اﻟﻄﻠﺒﺔ أﺑﻴﺎت ﻣﻦ‬ ‫ وﻳﺘﻌﺮف ﻋﲆ ﻣﻌﻠﻮﻣﺎت ﻋﻠﻤ ّﻴﺔ ﺟﺪﻳﺪة ﻣﻦ ﺧﻼل اﻟﻨّﺺ‬، ‫اﻟﺸﻌﺮ اﻟﻌﺮﺑﻲ‬ ‫اﻟﻤﻌﻠﻮﻣﺎﺗﻲ ﻛﻤﺎ أﻧﻪ ﺳﻴﺒﺪأ ﻓﻲ ﻛﺘﺎﺑﺔ أﺣﺪاث اﻟﻘِ ّﺼﺔ ُﻣﺮاﻋﻴﺎ ً ﻋﻨﺎﺻﺮاﻟﻘِ ّﺼﺔ‬ ‫ﻧﺤﻦ ﻣﺘﺤﻤﺴﻮن ﻟﻠﻐﺎﻳﺔ ﻟﻤﻮاﺻﻠﺔ اﻟﺘّﻌﻠﻴﻢ ﻣﻊ ﻃﻠﺒﺘﻨﺎ ﻓﻲ ﻣﺮﺣﻠﺔ‬.‫اﻟﺴﻠﻴﻤﺔ‬ ّ ‫واﻟﻜﺘﺎﺑﺔ‬ ‫اﻟﻤﺒﻜّﺮة‬ ‫ﻔﻮﻟﺔ‬ ‫اﻟﻄ‬. ّ ُ

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This week in Early Years This Week in Grade 1 In Grade 1, we are beginning Unit 5: Light and Sound. We are looking forward to learning about light and sound and exploring how they travel. In science, we will learn how light and sound are made, how they travel, and how they can help us. In writing, we will begin working on informational stories. Students will share their knowledge through various writing pieces. We will focus on addition and subtraction in math, including word problems, through 20 using strategies, such as counting, drawing, and number lines. We will also continue practicing addition within 100 by adding 2-digit and 1-digit numbers. We will explore our science topic through our read-aloud stories and continue to learn about text features and how to identify the main topic and key details. We are very excited to continue our learning journey with the boys and girls of Grade 1!

This Week in Learning Support Welcome back to another exciting term of learning. I hope you all had a restful holiday and you feel energized and ready to learn. I will continue to work on their seven developmental domains and making sure we are closing the gaps, and they are performing at their developmental age for each area. We have reached the final term of the school year, and in learning support this term, we will be working closely with our teachers, students, and parents to ensure every child's success at SZPAB!

This Week in STEAM We will be commencing our new term of STEAM challenges on the theme of 'Construction.' These weekly challenges will be focusing on different aspects of 'Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Maths.' They will help the children develop essential skills, such as problem-solving, creativity, communication skills, and thinking 'outside the box' to become outstanding innovators. We loved seeing the children's innovative designs during Term 2, and it was wonderful to see how their ideas and creativity developed over the weeks. They also had the opportunity to test their designs and discuss how they could make it even better next time. We hope the children enjoy the exciting STEAM challenges each week.

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This week in Early Years This Week in Parental Engagement We had an amazing Term 2, with a variety of online workshops being offered to the parents. Our latest workshop, “Readers,” focused on reading aloud to your child at home. Parents were provided with tips and strategies to stimulate their child’s imagination and expand their understanding of the world. To further instill the love of reading, we will be celebrating ‘World Book Day’ in Term 3. Students will have the opportunity to share their favorite stories with their peers and dress up as one of the story's characters. We look forward to celebrating the love of reading in Term 3.

This Week in Drama We have been exploring working in Process Drama. Process Drama is a way of working in Drama, which allows us to explore character, being in a role as a character, and thinking about "filling the gaps" in the story, with our drama work, through creative thinking. We explored the story of the Hare and the Tortoise. We have AMAZING actors in KG!! I loved watching all of your performances. I loved seeing your family getting involved in the learning as well! For the last few weeks of the term, we have been exploring tongue twisters. Tongue Twisters help us get our mouths moving, which helps our speaking, and they are a lot of fun! I love hearing our actors say the tongue twisters in our whispering, shouting, fast and slow voices! Some of our KG actors acted out the tongue twisters, an extra for experts! How amazing!! I love seeing all of our KG learners in action!

This Week in PE In PE, we have been focussing on movement and coordination. We have practiced movement skills that help us develop our fine and gross motor skills.

One of the activities we did was 'finger aerobics.' This helps us gain strength in our hands and fingers, which in turn helps in lesson activities like handwriting and drawing. We have played games where we are required to 'cross the midline' (imagine drawing a line from our head down the middle of our body, past our nose and tummy button, this is the midline). This is when our arms and legs cross the midline to do movements on the other side of our body; it's a real brain teaser! Children are encouraged to practice these activities to help them in day-to-day movements, for example, balance while walking upstairs or holding a pencil for a longer period of time.

This Week in Social & Emotional Well-Being Our focus for Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) for the beginning of Term 3 will be on students' personal-social growth. Children need to learn they can trust and rely on themselves and their caregivers. It is also vital that children have healthy interactions with their caregivers, adults, and peers. Personal-social skills are abilities children must develop to care for themselves (safety, sharing, washing hands, using utensils) and how they interact with others (playing games, understanding feelings of others).

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This Week in early Years

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This Week in early Years

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This Week in early Years

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This Week in early Years

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From the elementary principal Welcome to Term 3 and Ramadan Kareem.

In this newsletter we are celebrating our student scientists. Science topics often fill our weeks here in Elementary. We often use Integrated Units for science.What this means is, the topic or main idea being taught in science is used for learning in all subjects. In these units they teach English reading and writing, and mathematics linked and connected to the science topic. Often students might feel like they are doing science all week. The advantage of this is we use the excitement and motivation of the science topic to give purpose and a real-world application for English and mathematics skills.

There was no better example of this than Grade 3’s Animal Extinction Unit last term. Our students became paleontologists and spent the morning exploring and problem solving everything to do with Dinosaurs.

Students digging for fossils in our sandpit.

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This week in Elementary

Breaking open our dinosaur egg.

Students on the QR code hun.

Creating trace fossils using salt dough clay.

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This week in Elementary

Other grades have also been busy in term two, bringing science into the classrooms and many homes in our community. These student videos are all about educating the future leaders. These students have gained new knowledge and vocabulary. They have worked to understand these concepts and her they are preparing presentations to show their understanding. The skill these students show, being able to speak about their learning and explain complex topics in English is an indicator of the effort and hard work they have put into their learning. We are very proud of them.

Again, we have supplied a big list of links to videos.We try to celebrate as many students and as much learning as we can. Please take the time to watch them all.

Grade Five got through a big number of topics last term. Included here are videos about: Space and satellites, Phases of the moon, the water cycle, plant adaptations.

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This week in Elementary

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This week in Elementary Grade Four was looking at the earth science of geology and how rocks are formed.

Grade 2 have been learning about the different states of matter and how materials change.

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From the SEcondary Principal Dear parents, On Sunday March 21st, we launched the electives process for the 2021-2022 academic year. I was delighted with the number of parents who attend, developing their own understanding of the systems and processes that exist at SZPAB. Attendance to events such as this are crucial if parents are to support their son’s educational journey.

Information is detailed below including a recording of the workshop delivered. In Grades 11 and 12 in particular, it is important all parents and students are familiar with the latest updates from the Ministry of Education and the implications of Ministerial Resolutions 199 and 883. Details of both are contained within the High School Information Handbook.

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From the SEcondary Principal Grade 8 Going to 9 For students entering Grade 9 for 2021 / 22 students will have the option of the following subjects:

Grade 9 in to 10 For students entering Grade 10 for 2021 / 22 students will have the option of the following subjects:

Grade 10 Going into 11 AND Grade 11 Going into Grade 12 For students entering Grade 11 or 12 for 2021 / 22 students will be combined for their elective lessons and have the option of the following subjects:

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From the SEcondary Principal Ministerial Resolution 199 applicable for 2022 graduating year (Current Grade 11)

Ministerial Resolution 883 applicable for 2023 graduating year (Current Grade 10)

If you have any questions regarding the above information, please do not hesitate to contact myself at paul.dallyn@zayedacademyboys.ae or Mr. Zeyad AlHamdan at zayed.alhamdan@zayedacademyboys.ae

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From the Learning Support Department March 21st was World Down Syndrome Day! Connor Conway was a student at SZPAB until he moved back to his native England during the summer of 2019 with his family. In honor of World Down Syndrome Day, Connor wanted to share his experience and knowledge with our students What Causes Down Syndrome?

I have one extra chromosome.

Most people have 46 chromosomes in each nucleus, in every cell in their body.

But people with Down Syndrome have an extra Chromosome, usually number 21. That’s why World Down Syndrome Day is the 21st of March.

But we are all born different and we have to make the most of our talents!

I love basketball.

I love football and play for a team in the United Kingdom called Fulham Badgers I love reading.

I love music...

I love running... I run with Epsom and Ewell Harriers. I ran over thirty 5K runs in the year before lockdown. My 5K personal best is around 27 minutes.

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From the Learning Support Department

Whoever you are, however many chromosomes you have, just make the most of your talents.

I will be wearing odd socks on World Down Syndrome Day! Socks look a bit like chromosomes.

Odd socks represent odd or different chromosomes.

By wearing odd socks on World Down Syndrome Day, you will be standing alongside people with Down Syndrome and sending the message that we should celebrate our differences !

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From the Learning Support Department March 21st was World Down Syndrome Day! Connor Conway was a student at SZPAB until he moved back to his native England during the summer of 2019 with his family. In honor of World Down Syndrome Day, Connor wanted to share his experience and knowledge with our students Thank you to all the students, parents and teachers who participated in World Down Syndrome Day, and helped to bring awareness by wearing their odd socks and encouraging conversations about inclusion for all.

Down Syndrome Video

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From the Learning Support Department

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This week in VPA Two excellent pieces of work by Ahmed Khalid and Omar Abdulsalam, of a student devised performance of 'The Hare and Tortoise'.

VPA feedback (Danielle)

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