TKS WAVE Issue 01 2022

C U R I O S I T Y

INSPIRE CREATIVITY

Contents Page

INVESTIGATE

IGNITE

S O L U T I O N S

3.

Director’s Message

7.

Counselors Corner

13.

From Kindergarten

23.

From Elementary

29.

From Secondary

61.

3. Welcome 5. In a Nutshell

7. College Fair 11. University Acceptances

13. KG Principal Message 15. Zensory Zones 17. Who we are?

19. KG Field Day 21. Computer Science Education Week 2021

23. GES Principal Message 25. Supporting Multilingual Learners 27. Computer Science Education Week 2021

29. GSS Principal Message 30. Open Science, Open Source, Open Access 31. Grade 8 CAM in Motion 33. Madinah Trip 35. Friendly Football Tournament 37. U19 Boys Volleyball Team 39. U14 Girls Volleyball Team 41. School Musical 45. Interiew with a Women’s League Footballer 47. Video Production Design 49. Sci Cafe 2021 51. F1 in Schools 57. TKS Internship Program 59. Computer Science Education Week 2021

All School 61. BISJ Sprint Gala 63. Artist of KAUST Junior 2021 Exhibition 65. MADAC IB School Visits TKS 67. KAUST WEP Speaker

Dear all, It is hard to believe that we are already in 2022 and even harder to believe that we are still battling the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. I feel so fortunate to be here working with the amazing staff, parents, and students at The KAUST School. During the school year 2020-2021, we were the only school fully open in the Kingdom. Our students and community benefited greatly from this, and while we had a few positive cases in the community, we had no evidence of school-based transmission. Our focus continues to be on the health and safety of the students and staff and ensuring a high-quality learning program for all.

We enjoyed the freedom that came with starting a new school year in August with fewer regulations, and our students thrived in a number of ways that are highlighted in this month’s WAVE. We have had to come back to Distance Learning this January for a short time to ensure that we are continuing to protect our students and staff. We are hopeful that this period of distance learning will be short and we will be back to seeing our students shining in the classroom.

Last month I highlighted the school’s progress in areas of learning and engagement related to our strategic plan. Well-being is the third core area of our plan, which plays a significant role in student learning. This article in Education Week highlights the important connection between social/emotional learning and academic performance. The research shows that curiosity and persistence are two skills that have the greatest impact on learning in math and literacy. Across TKS, our teachers, counselors, and staff are focused on implementing the program Positive Discipline as well as the International School Counseling Standards. These are just two ways our program focuses on building social/emotional competencies in students.

It is common for people to underestimate the power of these social and emotional skills that students need. While repetition and memorization have a place in education, they should not be prioritized over learning social/emotional skills such as responsibility, persistence, curiosity, and assertiveness. When students are confident in their classrooms and with their relationships, they can shine in their academics as well.

I wish you an excellent beginning to this second semester of learning.

Dr. Michelle Remington Director The KAUST School

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Director’s Letter

Counselors Corner TKS College Fair 2021

By Brett Bowring College Counselor With recent travel restrictions having limited the in-person opportunities for international university representatives to visit high schools throughout the world, as they have traditionally done, schools have all resorted to various online methods of implementing university fairs. Due to the collaborative efforts of the KAUST community, as well as over a dozen international universities, The KAUST School was able to bring the live, in person, university fair back to our community in a one of a kind event.

On October 26, The KAUST School (TKS) was pleased to host a live, in person, college fair. TKS was able to utilize the graduate and doctoral university students at KAUST to serve as representatives of their recent alma maters. After connecting the KAUST students to the admissions office of their alma mater for training, they were prepared to discuss key details with the TKS students; such as programs of study, admissions requirements, financial aid, and campus life.

This fair was offered to the 280 high school students at TKS and was attended by representatives of 13 international universities from four different countries. With the UK being represented by the University of Glasgow, Canada by the University of British Columbia, Australia by the University of Western Australia, and the United States of America by institutions such as Cornell University, Georgia Institute of Technology, and the Purdue University, the TKS students gained valuable insight into the academic opportunities, campus environment, and student life at each of these universities.

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As our students from this year’s TKS Class of 2022 continue to balance the demands of their academic course load with all of life’s other challenges, they are also diligently working on completing applications to universities throughout the world. With each student having their own unique postsecondary plan, applications have gone out as early as this past October, while others will be submitted throughout the academic year, as far out as October, 2022. As some applications are submitted much earlier than others, the following students from the Class of 2022 have already applied and received university acceptances.

Note from KG Principal Tiffany Hill As we come to the end of the second semester, we have so much to celebrate in the Kindergarten!

We have established a strong KG PAC with six members representing all KG grade levels. We have developed new spaces including the “Zensory Zone,” Tinker and Maker Spaces, mini-libraries, and adult learning rooms. We began offering co-curricular activities for the first time to K3 students. Our Information & Digital Literacy Coaches also launched a STEM program through robotics in collaboration with KAUST Robotics, Intelligent Systems, and Control Lab volunteers.

The beautiful weather at this time of year means that you can find KG classes taking advantage of the wider KAUST community’s environment and facilities. Field trips engage children in first-hand experiences that promote curiosity, making connections, and deeper understanding.

Trips are also an excellent opportunity for social and language development, as students need to navigate different spaces and interact with others in different ways. Keep your eye out for us at one of KAUST’s parks or beaches, the university campus, recreation facilities, and a variety of other destinations. Be sure to ask us about what we’re learning!

In February, we look forward to sharing student learning at Kindergarten Parent Conferences, TKS Partners for Learning, and celebrating our community at International Week!

Tiffany Hill KG Principal

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Kindergarten

Zensory Zones

By Che'te Bey Learning Support Teacher The TKS KG now has a sensory room, commonly referred to as the Zensory Zone, in each building. The Zensory Zone is a space that supports children in regulating their mind and body by creating a calming environment as a response to and prevention of sensory overload. The Zensory Zone supports children by encouraging sensory stimulation, supporting emotional well-being, and provides a safe space to practice coping skills and emotional regulation strategies.

The Zensory Zone contains a variety of features to regulate children. This space invites children to sit on cushions or in the darkened tent while listening to gentle music, breathing in calming aromatherapy scents, and engaging their sense of touch with a variety of tactile materials. Furthermore, mesmerizing bubble tubes and dazzling fibre optic lights provide a visually calming experience. After working through their emotions and focusing themselves, children are better prepared for learning and interacting with others.

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By Zachary Smith KG Teacher The 2021 TKS KG Field Day was the first time that all three Kindergarten grade levels participated in Field Day as a whole campus on the same day. It was also a triumphant Field Day return after a two-year hiatus. During Field Day, students from across the grade levels spent at least an hour engaged in fun, active, challenging, and developmentally appropriate games and exercises. They cooperated with each other to attain goals and cheered on their peers. As the outdoor event required support from staff, faculty, administration, students, and parents alike, it became a community-building event that brought our school together in a way that hadn't been possible in quite some time. It also served as a powerful and authentic culminating experience for our PE games unit, as well as a vivid reminder of the role of movement and play in our health and wellbeing. Thanks to everyone who participated, especially our wonderful parent volunteers!

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Kindergarten

Field Day

Note from GES Principal Jeff Woodcock Celebrating the return of GES Book Week!

From November 28 to December 2, Gardens Elementary School celebrated the return of Book Week after a one-year hiatus due to the pandemic. While we were unable to have an in-person visit from our guest author, Ben Clanton was able to join us for highly engaging online sessions. Ben was the most popular author we have had joined us for Book Week at GES, with his Narwal and Jelly series of books always in high demand in our library. Ben’s online sessions with students connected to their current literacy units of study, and also provided plenty of time for creativity and illustration.

Beyond Ben’s virtual visit, the students participated in a week full of fun activities aimed at celebrating reading and literacy. In talking to students, it seemed that each child had a different highlight of the week. For some students, pajama day was their favorite event. For others, it was the book swap event or the amazing Arabic Book Sale. The poem in your Pocket and the Vocabulary Parade were also lots of fun. A big thanks for the success of Book Week goes to the GES librarian, Wendy Foreman, for organizing the events as well as Ben Clanton’s visit. Following Book Week, we heard many students share that they already can’t wait for next year’s event. Neither can we!

Jeff Woodcock GES Principal

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Note from GSS Principal David Tigchelaar Welcome to a new Semester. TKS, in collaboration with KAUST Health and HSE, decided to start the school after the winter break with two weeks of Distance Learning. I believe this was a good response to the surge in COVID cases worldwide and especially in KAUST. The COVID risks for secondary school students and teachers were extremely limited as all of us have received at least two vaccinations. Many students and teachers, however, were not yet able to participate in face-to-face classes because they were in quarantine or out of the Kingdom. The decision to move to Distance Learning mode was therefore a sensible decision. I am pleased that students and teachers were able to pivot easily to a new teaching mode and I believe that the disruption in learning has been minimal.

Many tournaments are coming up, and our students will participate in these tournaments as planned. Participation in our co-curricular program is higher than ever before. I am pleased that the school has been able to provide more choices, that our students are interested in participating and that the tournaments will take place as scheduled.

We look forward to another semester full of learning and full of co-curricular activities.

David Tigchelaar GSS Principal

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Grade 8

CAM in Motion

By Shaina Banzuela G8 Student

We created our CAM (Computer Aided Manufacturing) toys by using Adobe Illustrator, laser cutting, and hand-building to create the parts like the box, cam parts (crank, follower, etc), as well as our own character, to tell a story. We will share and present our projects and tell the story to second-grade students from the Elementary.

Being one of the more creative projects for Design, we found that customizing to try and make it function correctly was the biggest priority and toughest challenge. This led to using our own imagination everywhere else in the project (color, character, style, story, etc.). You can see a student’s personality just by looking at their project.

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Madinah Trip

By Wejdan Khan Arabic and Islamic Studies Teacher TKS students reach new heights - spiritually and physically During November 25-27, TKS students (G9-12) embarked on a spiritually awakening journey to Al Madinah, the second holiest city in Islam. Madinah was home to Prophet Mohammed (Peace Be Upon Him) and his family. It is also the city where he died and the gravesite (Al Rawdah) remains in Al Masjid Alnabawi (Prophet’s Mosque).

Al Masjid Alnabawi

Upon arrival, students prayed in Masjid Quba, after which they set off to explore the Madinian desert. Students and chaperones put their physical strength to the test as they hiked up rocky mountains and down valleys. The excursion was well worth coming back to a traditional “Madinee” feast of “Arabi” rice and lamb, Samboosa, and mint tea “Shai habag”.

This special trip was enriched with Friday prayers in Almasjid Alnabawi and a visit to the Prophet’s gravesite “AlRawdah.” Students also visited a bird sanctuary, the museum that showcased the Prophet’s (PBUH) life, and the iconic Madinah Mint market.

It was definitely an unforgettable trip on many levels and students returned motivated to dedicate more time to self-reflection and improvement.

Did you know?

-Praying in Masjid Quba is equivalent to doing Umrah (Pilgrimage to Makkah)?

-Black Ajwa dates only grow in Madinah and nowhere else in the world - they are said to have healing properties.

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Al Masjid Alnabawi

November Friendly Football Tournament

By Andrew Wright Football Coach

On November 18, KAUST was visited by Miraas Team, one of Jeddah’s best women’s football squads, for a series of friendly games against a representative TKS Sharks team and KAUST’s Magpies Women’s Football Club. Miraas had been selected as one of six Jeddah teams to participate in the next edition of the Saudi Women’s Regional Football League. Therefore, they were looking to get a competitive experience before their campaign on November 22nd.

After six very competitive football games were played, Miraas emerged as winners with 7 points, narrowly ahead of TKS Sharks on 6 points, while Magpies B and Magpies A finished third and fourth respectively. Sharks goal scorers included Aella Tsorpatzidi (G11), Pearl Wright (G11), Yara Albatran (G10), and Judy Masry (G9), while keeper Rital Alali (G9) had two shutouts in goal.

New rules for Saudi teams meant Miraas could also recruit non-Saudi players as well as junior players (with parental approval). So they were also scouting KAUST players to bolster their squad for these upcoming league games. The players chosen to join Miraas Team included: Emilia Salvador (G9, TKS Sharks - see accompanying interview), Carlota Rodriguez, Micaela Justo, Laura Pulido Beltran and Itziar Armendariz (all Magpies WFC). Congratulations to all our talented community members who will now be playing in the regional league!

Big thanks go to Wedyan Babatain for organizing the event, Community Affairs for logistical support, Toluwalogo Daramola for MCing, and our tireless and outstanding referees David Lago Cachon and Bilal Abdrabboh.

TKS U19

Boys Volleyball Team

By Evelise Togi Vaoga MYP Personal Project Coordinator

Sometimes, it’s not about winning at all.

This year the TKS U19 Boys Volleyball team had a purpose: to win; an intent: to work hard, and so they did. Led by seniors Youssef Elhagrasy and Alvin Huang, who have served the sport since middle school, this year’s team was short, physically small but compensated for these shortcomings with great heart, commitment, and discipline.

By sticking to our game plan: BROTHERHOOD FIRST, mental game second, win third; the boys were sitting comfortably, undefeated on the first day. The highlight was beating the British School of Dammam on their home turf, with the whole school watching. To have 24 voices from TKS to drown out and eventually silence the whole school was very satisfying. But our best game was yet to come.

The context of the sport at TKS is that 4 times they had been to a final, four times they came away without winning a championship. At the start of the season, 18 boys turned out to trial; the final 10 were selected after the RSAC tournament hosted by the British International School of Jeddah.

We played Dammam High School first thing on Friday morning. We were tied 1st place with them in our pool. From the outset of the game, it was clear just how focused and determined the boys were.

They were simply sublime. So much so that the event organizer had said, ‘I watched your boys this morning. Ofoof…wow!’ The boys’ systems and gameplays were ON FIRE. It seemed that they had peaked with the season and now with the tournament. This game was our best game of the tournament.

Of the 10 boys who were selected to play in the U19 Boys’ Volleyball Team, 4 were seniors, 5 were grade 11s, and 1 was grade 10. Of the 10 boys, only 2 had played a SAIKAC final and 6 had never played volleyball before.

At the SAIKAC tournament, we were soon to realize just how much of an underdog we were: most teams were experienced volleyballers who had come through a robust school volleyball program, most schools were tall and physically big (a lethal combination in volleyball) and most schools were familiar with each other which signified they had regular ‘friendlies’.

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Once we had cleared American International School of Riyadh out of the way, leaving us still undefeated after 5 games, we had to face our neighbors, British International School Jeddah (BISJ) in the semi-final, whom we lost to a week and a half earlier 2 sets to 1. BISJ WERE SEEMINGLY UNSTOPPABLE against Dammam High School and it looked like our dream ‘streak’ would come to an end along with gold for our seniors. We won 2 straight sets, sweeping aside BISJ for our 6th win in the tournament.

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The greatest upset did not involve TKS per se, the U16 Boys SAIKAC champions, American School of Dammam BEAT their U19 boys’ team to meet us in the final. Everybody cheered the U16 team, the underdog, just because it was a great story unfolding. Amongst the colossal outpouring of emotion for the victors, a team from just north of Jeddah, like its namesake, were sharks circling, waiting for its next victim.

A huge thank you to the seniors: Alvin Huang, Bruno Parisi-Borelli, Khuslen Bambar, and Youssef Elhagrasy who had a vision and put in motion action in order to achieve the vision. The 6 students who had never played before but listened with the heart and followed great modeling and examples of excellence: Ahmad Alsharif, Andrew Auckland, Hannan Mohiuddin, Timo Sladakovic, William Norseth, Yousef AbdelAal.

After the initial nerves, TKS won the first set 25-23 and soared to victory with a 2nd and final set 25-13, the exact same score as when we first met the same U 16 team in the pool games. Finally, the TKS team won gold, and went through the tournament undefeated and with a team of which 60% had never played competitively before.

Finally, heartfelt gratitude to Mr. Francois de Ryckel who had been through it all over the last few years as an assistant coach during his time here at our wonderful school. Thank you for being the ‘heart’ of the team all these years.

It is prudent to say, however, that a team is only a champion for a day; the next day and thereafter until they win a championship again, they are defending champions. Needless to say, like a shark waiting and preying, plans to defend the title are already in place.

2022

here we come

!

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U14 Girls

Volleyball Team

By Sarah Samman and Yara Elrez Senior Players

This season was the first season since 2019 in which we were able to participate in RSAC and SAIKAC due to COVID 19 restrictions.

I remember at the beginning of Grade 6, we had absolutely no idea what we were doing, but looking at ourselves now, we can see how much we have developed. We, U14 seniors moving on to U16, wouldn’t have been able to develop the way we did without our teammates and especially our coaches. We wanted to give a big thank you to everyone who helped us out this year. Especially, our two amazing coaches: Mr. Bermudez and Mrs. Olson.

Throughout this season, we were able to use our collaboration skills to help each other and form new friendships and become stronger as a team. We should all be proud of ourselves for how much we’ve improved from the beginning of the cycle. Although we came in second and third places in SAIKAC, we could see great improvements since RSAC. We all are proud of each and everyone in our team. The Grade 8s would like to say a special thank you and goodbye to our coaches for an amazing last year of U14. We hope the Grade 7s and other upcoming U14 players will continue to make developments. At the end of the day, this season will be unforgettable for all of us.

TKS Musical

By Samuel Paterson Student Director, G11 At the start of the school year, the TKS Arts Department took on one of its most ambitious projects: We Will Rock You. The cast and crew only had a few months to prepare for this two-and-a-half-hour-long Queen-inspired musical. It was set out to be the most impressive, technically breathtaking, and entertaining performance ever put on by TKS. The cast was chosen in September. Two months later, they were performing. The whole company was met with extreme trials and troubles with no choice but to rise to the challenge!

And so it begins...

On day 1, each actor was given the task of devising the features of their character: the walk, the talk, the reactions. In the first week, we blocked scenes, learned lines, choreographed new dances- we would continue to do this for many months.

I remember watching Ms. Phume, the director, teaching Galileo Figaro one of the dances.

After each take, he is out of breath. He continues to sing and run and denies his exhaustion’s appropriation. He works hard for his part. I can see it in him as I watch him. He listens intently and performs to the absolute best of his ability.

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The show must go on!

On the performance night, Galileo exits stage left, drenched in sweat. He has just sung and danced Under Pressure, and he is as heated as he looks.

Crew surrounds him, myself included, to fan him, wipe his sweat, and get him water. He can barely speak. Five minutes later, he enters the stage from the audience, and the spectators can’t notice any difference.

Following him on stage is Scaramouche, his chick. In her acting, her singing, her dancing, she puts her heart. Everyone watching is in awe of her talent and dedication. She has put days of work into every single aspect of her actions, and anyone watching can tell. She exhibits pure eminence when onstage.

Her very presence draws the audience’s attention.

Behind the scenes Now onstage, to Scaramouche’s right is the student producer. With her headset on, she watches the show and communicates with the lights and sound crew. After many minutes, she hears the cue for the end of the scene. The lights go down, and her crew rushes on stage, rapidly moving in boxes and chairs.

As silent ninjas, the audience barely takes any notice of the backstage crew, meaning they did their job precisely. They, along with the technical crew, successfully changed the stage from a wasteland to the Hard Rock Café in less than a minute.

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Drawing to a close An hour later, the show is drawing to a close. The show’s finale, Bohemian Rhapsody, will be on soon, and I wait on the side with my fellow co-director and other crew prefects. We never go on stage, but for Bohemian Rhapsody, it’s too much to resist rushing on with our eccentric wigs and vibrant feather boas. We run on and stand next to the cast, smiling at them and each other. We sing our hearts out, and the audience gives a standing ovation.

Galileo Figaro is at the front of the crowd, with the other leads at his side. I look at his back and think about everything that we did to get here. We put on this performance for the KAUST community, but we also put it on for ourselves. Singing and dancing out Queen songs is probably the most spectacular way to perform for two hours. Galileo, Scaramouche, the Killer Queen, Commander Khashoggi, Buddy, Brit and Oz, the Gaga kids, the Bohemians, the co-directors, producers, technical directors, costume designers, sound and lighting prefects, we all worked to get to this glorious moment on this glorious stage.

Of course, this performance couldn’t have been such a fabulous event without the teachers and crew involved in bringing this to true life.

Ms. Phume, Mr. Webb, Mr. Eduardo, Ms. Rita, Ms. Robin, Ms. Nahla, Mrs. Danaher, and Mrs. Hubbard worked hard in collaboration with the company.

I, along with the rest of the cast and crew, would like to thank all the exceptional professionals for their guidance and support.

!

Buddy puts his fist in the air, and the ensemble follows suit. Long live rock and roll

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TKS Musical

We Will Rock You

By Sama Hammad G12 Student I am Sama Hammad, a senior at The KAUST School. I have been a part of this school since 2009. My journey started when I was in K-3.

Through my Middle School Programme, I joined many Musicals. I started out as an Orchestra member in "Doctor Do Little," playing the cello. I then started auditioning for acting roles. I became an actress in "Alice through the I-phone" and "Beauty and the Beast." When I started my Diploma Programme journey, I wanted to do something different. Because I decided to study Theatre as a higher level subject, I was granted endless experiences with directing and putting my creativity on the frontlines for the world to see; an example would be my Solo theatre pieces and in-class activities. I joined our school's film, "FAME!" as a student director who worked alongside our principal director Ms. Phumelele Ngcobo. For my final year at the school, I applied for the exact position of student director and succeeded. By far, this year's experience was the most memorable.

Last year, I was timid and tense, scared of suggesting directorial ideas and being rejected. Since it is my final year, I did not limit myself.

Additionally, the environment built by the cast and crew was welcoming. There were so many days where I would be drained and tried, and the cast and crew would make me regain my lost energy with our inside jokes, dances, and fun times. The bond we shared was one a family would, so thank you all for that!

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Our Musical "WE WILL ROCK YOU!" was a huge success, and we will continue to produce wonderful musicals even after I leave. Countless hours were invested into creating this masterpiece. I take pride in knowing all these people I met and the opportunities I have been given from this school, although directing had stressful moments, such as being scared of falling behind schedule or having actors not memorize their lines/ choreography number...

Hearing the applaud of the audience and reactions to the musical was a rewarding feeling. Although these applauds were a small gesture, the fact that we had audience members watch our musical for three nights filled me with so many emotions. This all reminded me of the starting point of all this process. I will never forget the starting process of "WE WILL ROCK YOU!" and how so many of our actors broke free from that bubble of shyness to shine brightly on stage.

On our very first rehearsal, which was with "Killer Queen" (Chloe Versoza) and "Commander Khashoggi" (Maya Vink), we sat down in a circle. We talked about their visions of their characters on stage: Both of the characters ' walks, postures, tones, attitudes, their elements (fire, water, earth, air), if they would befriend them, and costumes. Everything the cast said during their meetings with Ms.Phumelele, Samuel, and I came to life on stage because our cast had the confidence to show the audience another side of themselves no one would expect to see. I want to congratulate all of the helping hands (including cast and crew) for this unforgettable experience and the performances! I will miss you all and hope to work with you again soon.

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Who are the professional women football players you look up to?

Megan Rapinoe is one of my favorite women’s football players. She plays as a winger and captain of Reign FC of the National Women’s Soccer League and plays for the United States Women’s National Soccer Team. Not only is she incredibly talented, but she is also a great person. I look up to her because someday, I hope to follow her example. I want to be as strong and courageous as her, and I look up to the immense work and effort she puts into her career. Another player I look up to is Tobin Heath, who plays for Arsenal and the USWNT. She plays right-wing and is incredibly good at dribbling.

What words of encouragement do you have for girls who want to play football at TKS? Girls who want to play football in TKS should take every opportunity TKS offers. They should always try out and never let anybody tell them differently.

Stick always to your dreams, and someday, it may come true. Like it did for me. Believe me, a couple of weeks ago, I would never have thought of getting an invitation to play for the Saudi Women’s Regional Football League, and even now, I still can’t believe that this is real. TKS staff, and by staff, I mean mainly the coaches, will always support you.

Take every chance you can get, join the co-curricular activities in school, and join voluntary practices and games in KAUST. Moreover, never forget what should always be your priority: school. Get your homework and studies done to have a free mind to give the best you can on the pitch!

Postscript: As of the time of writing Emilia has played 6 games and scored 3 goals for Miraas Team who are third in the Jeddah division of the Saudi Women’s Regional Football League.

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Video Production

Design

By Jesse Remington GSS Design Teacher Making a Difference through Public Service Announcements & Creating Suspense Students in the High School Media & Communications: Video production class have been busy developing their pre-production, production, post-production/editing and storytelling design skills by producing videos for different genres and themes.

They have recently gone through a video production design process to raise awareness about topics and issues they are interested in making a difference about, by creating short Public Service Awareness videos (PSA’s). They also created posters to help raise awareness. Please view the links to some of the videos below.

Link to video

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Link to video

Link to video

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Students also previously worked in groups to plan and produce suspenseful short movies titled

“The Door.”

Final versions were individually edited. Students created a suspenseful mood through creative camera angles, pacing, sequencing of shots, colorizing video, adding special effects, and audio and music. Prepare to be

SCARED when you watch the following movies. Enjoy!

E R A “YOU

” !

T X NE

The Door

By Sai Katuri, Gr10 Click here The Door

By Carl Canlas, Gr9 Click here The Door

By Tai Vasily, Gr10 Click here

Stay tuned for sharing of final projects which will be completed in late January 2022. Students are applying their video design skills to produce a video project of their choice - music videos, special effects, short dramas, and animations among other genres.

GO SHARKS !

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Sci Cafe 2021

By Emma Nason Ph.D GSS Science Teacher There is nothing like Formula 1 to raise the adrenaline! The excitement of the race coming to Jeddah was further enhanced by the involvement of KAUST in the research on the McLaren car. In November, the Sci Café TKS had the privilege of having KAUST Ph.D. students that are directly involved in the research come and speak to our students. Kiran Yalamanchi talked about fuel optimization, Altynay Kaidarov talked about the lightweight graphene sensors that are being designed for the car and Mohammed Alsayyari spoke about aerodynamics. They also were able to share some of their own personal stories about how they got to be working in these exciting and innovative fields. The TKS students hung onto these three students’ every word! The Ph.D. students were so impressed with the quality of our TKS students’ questions and commented on how they are now feeling encouraged about the next generation of chemists, physicists, and engineers coming through schools.

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Kiran Yalamanchi It is amazing to see these students breaking the boundaries of imagination and going out of the box to discuss new technologies. It is not quite often that researchers like us get to see the excitement of the work we do. The enthusiasm of the students has multiplied my excitement to work with formula 1.

Not long ago, I was in their seats and this just took me back to the roots of my journey of what I am doing now. I am grateful to be part of this interaction with the young generation.

Mohammed Alsayyari It was a pleasure to connect with our future generation.

I felt that they were very informed about our topics and very engaged in asking how our research aims for a sustainable path.

Altynay Kaidarova It was truly fascinating to interact with the inquisitive young generation of KAUST. I was happy to see the bright and sparkling eyes of students, eager to ask questions and learn more about cutting-edge technology developments. It surely helped me to gain different perspectives of our research for McLaren Racing.

One of the most impactful moments was when a student demonstrated his knowledge of sensors. He revealed the exact number of sensors a typical racing car possesses. I believe such students are the seeds and the key to a better and more fruitful future.

The project's highlight was racing our cars at KAUST University during Research Week with a fabulous audience and esteemed guest Lando Norris.

Having a McLaren Formula One Driver race, one of our student-designed cars, was completely surreal and mind-blowingly awesome! Our students were thrilled and excited as they watched Norris race and autograph their cars.

BISJ Sprint

Gala

By Daan Sengers Aquatics Director

Well done to all swimmers who took part in the BISJ Sprint Gala on December 12, 2021. This Sprint Gala at the British International School of Jeddah covered 25-meter and 50-meter sprint distances in all four strokes.

Since September last year, our shark swimmers have been working hard to develop their oxidative energy system and skills and techniques in the Individual Medley events. Students were excited to take part again in a swim meet and put what they had been learning into practice.

It was great to compete against BISJ and AISJ in the pool again and see some familiar faces again. This was the first swim meet in a while. This was an excellent opportunity to get back into swimming competitively, practicing the technique and skills that the students had worked on since September and having fun being with the team. All the swimmers put in an incredible effort, and we are looking forward to the TKS Swim Meets, held at the Island Recreation Center, on February 12 & 26!

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GO SHARKS !

Artists of

KAUST Junior 2021 Exhibition

The Artists of KAUST Junior 2021 Exhibition took place at the Island Recreation Club between November 1 and 25. The theme for this year's event was An International Community.

Dias Nihya Alsy

There were more than 60 pieces of amazing artwork done by our young community members under 13 years of age, and the images can be found in this photo gallery.

A panel of judges reviewed the artwork and selected the winners in each category:

Group & Individual

Amina Katsieva

Carolina, Claudia, Leopoldo, Martina TKS Wave

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Youyou Liu

Lina Buckley

Moosa- Sara, Salley, Zaid, Salma

Stanislaus Bobby D'souza

On December 2, TKS welcomed the administrative team from the MADAC Academy in Madinah. MADAC Academy is a new IB school in the Kingdom with core values in Excellence, Challenge, and Innovation.

They saw a natural connection between their values and the educational vision being implemented at TKS, so were keen to learn about the TKS journey. The team received an overview of our school’s journey and programming from our Director, Michelle Remington as well as our Director of Learning and Innovation, Julian Edwards. Insightful dialogue was exchanged and the team left feeling inspired.

Within the region, The KAUST School is increasingly being recognized for its delivery of an exceptional IB program and we are happy to do our part in supporting Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 in providing a model of excellence in education.

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MADAC IB School Visits TKS

By Yasmeen Ghunaim Advancement Lead

The KAUST School is our benchmark” Dr. Abdulrahman Olwi MADAC Director-General

TKS WAVE GET SOCIAL WITH TKS Follow us on social media TheKAUSTSchool TheKAUSTSchool

Safaa Gardens School 4700 KAUST Thuwal, Western Province 23955-6900 Kingdom of Saudi Arabia +966 (0)12 808-6803 tks.communications@thekaustschool.org tks.kaust.edu.sa TheKAUSTSchool TheKAUSTSchool TKSSharks Media