Pirates Outing – Year 5 2019
Piracy is a crime that is committed on ships which are at sea. Pirate is the name given to those people. Pirates use boats to attack other ships, which are usually large cargo ships.
The History of the Jolly Roger Flag (Skull and Crossbones)
The Jolly Roger was not originally the name of a pirate ship, although in modern times it was made a popular name for a ship by JM Barrie in the stories of Peter Pan, where Captain Hook sailed aboard the Jolly Roger pirate ship.
Our day out at sea on The Jolly Roger Pirate Ship
The Year 5 Students have been learning all about the Pirates of long ago. Their interests lie with the different types of flags, life on board a pirate ship, pirate food and pirate punishments. The students found fascinating the existence of women Pirates such as, Anne Bony and Mary Reed.
To sum up this very intriguing theme, we decided to have a little fun on board The Jolly Roger Pirate Ship that sails the waters of the Atlantic Ocean. We departed from the V & A Waterfront and went as far out to Sea Point and back.
It was a fun day filled with lots of excitement.
Mrs Nadia Mahomed
Year 5 Teacher
Key Stage 1 Spelling Bee – Term 1 2019
Every year we have a spelling bee for Key stage 1. It is a fun competition and great opportunity for our students to practice their spelling and see how far they can go. We begin by asking our classes to spell a selection of words we have learnt in the first term. The top three spellers from each class are then the finalists for the competition.
Our 9 finalists for Year 1 and 2 are positioned on stage separately and given words to spell. As the competition progresses we ask for more challenging words. This provides an exciting platform for our students to explore the words they have learnt and perhaps even push themselves into discovering new words.
The three winners for Year 1:
Amber Jordan (3rd)
Sinddhizhai Divakaran (2nd)
Divyanshi Bajpai (1st)
The three winners for Year 2:
Georgiana Cannell (3rd)
Nate Veenendaal(2nd)
Nivad Manouchehri (1st)
Congratulations to our spelling champions!
Mrs Charlie Cronje
Key Stage 1 Teacher
Reception Year Show and Tell – Term 1 2019
At the end of the two week theme covering Transport each student had to prepare a short presentation about their favourite transport or vehicle. The students really enjoyed sharing the information they had learnt with their classmates.
Here is a sentence from each student’s Show and Tell in Ms Nuthall’s class:
Emanuel Omole (5 years old): “This is my car. It goes super fast on the road.”
Madison Carli (5 years old): “I like carriages, because they don’t need any petrol. They have nice wheels and they are pretty.”
Irén Martinez Braquiero (5 years old): “The boat is blue.”
Malin Van Zandvoort (5 years old): I like bicycles, because they can go really fast.”
Gabriel Perdigão (6 years old): “The titanic sailed from New York.”
Uyindalo Kweyama (5 years old): “Mr Ferarri has the same name as my sister, Enzo.”
Sarah Miller (5 years old): “Here’s the part where the astronauts drive the rocket.”
Ali Sadi Hastürk (5 years old): “This aeroplane is from Turkish Airlines.”
Thami Makubalo (5 years old): “My car drives fast like my daddy.”
Melissa Moje (5 years old): “When I go to Midrand I fly in an aeroplane.”
Louis Kane (5 years old): “This is a fire truck. The ladder can go up.”
Jenna Miller (5 years old): “The campervan has 17 windows.”
Joel Mofokeng (7 years old): “The aeroplane goes high in the sky.”
Zoe- Jane Way (5 years old): “The Myciti bus is blue, red and white.”
Reuben Davids (6 years old): “This helicopter goes high up and it can land on mountains.”
Britney Quadri (5 years old): “This is my sports car and it has 4 wheels.”
Michele Lemme (5 years old): “The aeroplane goes fast and lands on the ground very slowly.”
They did very well in showing the class their creations and communicating in a public speaking scenario.
Ms Bronwen Nuthall
Reception Year teacher
From the Principal’s Desk – 21st March 2019
Dear Parents
“Your relationships can only be as healthy as you are.”
– Neil Clark Warren
We have reached the end of the first term and I cannot believe how the days and weeks have flown by. My goal for this week was to thank each and every one of my staff for their dedication, support and hard work. Nothing we do is insignificant and every small action contributes to the greater whole. I therefore wish to thank everyone, from our administrative team to the cleaning staff, for their efforts this term.
I was reminded this week of the truth in the saying, “It takes a village to raise a child”. Every one of our dedicated staff, on a daily basis, has the opportunity to shape and positively affect our students.
In order to take care of others, we have to take care of ourselves and I’d like to leave you with an extract from the book ‘25 Ways to Win With People’ by John C. Maxwell.
- Recognize your value
- Accept your value
- Increase your value
- Believe in your value
Winners are valuable and when we embrace our own value we are able to ignite this in others. I value my staff, our students and parents and wish you all a wonderful holiday.
We would like to wish Mr Craig Radnitz all the best in his new venture. He has been a valuable and dedicated staff member to BIS and will be sparky missed. May the new team in the UK be supportive and welcome him with open arms.
Those of you who are travelling, may you travel safe and return well rested.
Kind regards
Edna
From the Principal’s Desk – 14th March 2019
Dear Parents
Every year our school’s three house teams compete against each other in sport. The students wear their team colours with pride and trumpet their war-cries enthusiastically across the field of battle.
We feel, however, that our three houses deserve a central role in our school’s consciousness, rather than being carted out only for inter-house sporting events. We want to remind our students of the importance of cooperation and team spirit and see them embody the ethos of their particular house.
A challenge was presented to parents to design the crests for the three house and we thank all the families who accepted the challenge and submitted creative and inspirational designs. The designs submitted by the Miller family were chosen and we extend our heartfelt thanks for their efforts and enthusiasm in taking up the challenge.
On Wednesday, the 13th of March, we unveiled the three crests, Bodiam, Leads and Windsor, in our school foyer. The houses are named for three castles in England.
The lion of Windsor is symbolic of the strength inherent in a pride; the elephant of Bodiam, the unity of family and the rhino of Leeds reminds us of our own resilience, our ability to overcome challenges and survive.
I would also like to thank Miss Yvette Fourie who came up with this brilliant idea to encourage comradeship amongst our students. Her valuable contributions to our school is evidence of her passion and commitment.
It was heartwarming to see the surprise and excitement on the students faces as they walked into the foyer on Wednesday morning and spotted the crests. I am sure these crests will engender greater enthusiasm and commitment towards the three houses and I am looking forward to seeing the houses develop a greater role and significance in our school community as the year continues.
I wish you all a wonderful weekend ahead.
Kind regards
Edna
Launch of the Literacy Project at Vaatjie Primary School – Interact Club
“Readers are leaders”. This was the message to the students during the launch of the Literacy Project at Vaatjie Primary School.
Members of Blouberg International School’s Interact Club were invited to participate in this worthy event. Books were handed over to the school, and all people present (Rotarians/Rotaractors/Interactors) had some special reading time with the learners, helping interpret/explain the story to them, and having some interactive time. It was an enjoyable experience for all.
This Literacy Project is an ongoing programme; therefore, our Interactors are looking forward to revisiting Vaatjie Primary School in the near future.
Mrs Elena Berger
High School Interact Club
The Tudors – Year 4 Term 1 2019
In Design and Technology this term the Year 4’s have done some cross-curricular work with our History topic on The Tudors.
We have learnt how to recognise a Tudor house by looking at their main features.
Most homes were half timbered with wooden frames and the spaces between were filled with small sticks and wet clay called wattle and daub. Tudor homes were known for their ‘ black- and- white‘ effect.
Some other key features included:
- The wooden timbers were often coated with black tar to help protect them from rotting.
- Tudor houses are made from a wooden framework of beams. The timber beams on Tudor houses are uneven because they were cut by hand rather than by machine.
- The wooden beams can be seen on the outside of Tudor houses. Tudor houses have steeply pitched roof covered with clay or stone tiles. Many older Tudors houses had a thatched roof.
- The upper floors of some Tudor houses were bigger than the ground floor and would overhang (called a jetty). The origins of the jetty are not entirely known but certainly in a town, it would have the effect of enlarging the floor space above whilst giving maximum street width.
We loved designing and building our own Tudor houses.
Ms Bridget Neal
Year 4 Teacher
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The importance of play – Pre-Reception Term 1 2019
“Play is nature’s means of ensuring that young mammals, including young human beings, acquire the skills that they need to acquire to develop successfully into adulthood”
– Dr Peter Gray
As I observe my Pre-Reception class and reflect over the first term, I can’t believe how quickly the time has gone by and how much they have already developed. “Time flies when you are having fun!” The students have settled into the class routine beautifully and for some of them it is their first time at school.
Each week they have learnt about different themes, identifying numbers and sounds, number and letter formation, pencil control, shapes, colours, done activities to strengthen their fine motor skills, complete patterns, the importance of sharing and taking turns to name only a few of the things.
As I watch and interact with my students, it strikes me that people don’t realize the importance of play and what they actually learn through play. During play children are thinking, problem solving, developing memory, planning, investigating, developing language skills, concentrating and learning many more skills… Play is healthy for children, it reduces stress and anxiety by providing an outlet. Play is the medium through which children explore and experience their world around them. It’s how they learn! To a child, playing and working or learning are the same thing.
I noticed the children in my class engaging in various types of play throughout the day:
Fantasy or Dramatic Play also known as pretend play or make – believe play which involves “acting out” ideas and role playing activities.
Sensory play involves stimulating the senses, tastes, textures, smells, colours, shapes and movements.
Investigative stage of play is when a child wants to see what happens when materials are manipulated in a certain way.
Competitive Play refers to games with rules that are more structured and may involve more than one player. My students love to play Hide and seek as well as Duck duck goose.
Constructive Play involves creating things and manipulating objects to make something. Some of the students really enjoy playing with the wooden blocks and building the most amazing constructions.
Physical Play refers to play that is purely physical, such as climbing a jungle gym, skipping etc.
Creative Play is about creating art using paint, crayons, cutting and pasting etc to express oneself.
Here are some tips how parents can support their child through play in the holidays:
-Allow enough time for play indoors and outdoors every day.
-Provide a safe environment.
-Play with your child and verbalise what they are doing and ask them questions to promote language development and problem solving.
-Allow your child to explore and get dirty during play.
-Provide stimulating toys and equipment.
-Encourage freedom of choice and do not interfere in the game.
-Provide clothes and accessories for dress-up play.
-Focus on the enjoyment of the game and not only on winning.
-Focus on games that teach mathematical and early reading skills.
-Play is not just good for your child but it’s good for parents too. Similarly to children, play helps parents relieve stress, mend and strengthen relationships and keeps everyone happy.
So the next time your children ask you to play with them, it’s not just good for them it’s good for YOU too!
Cindy Nunan
Pre-Reception Teacher
De Beers English Olympiad 2019
On Tuesday the 5th of March five of our senior students competed in the prestigious De Beers English Olympiad.
The De Beers English Olympiad is an English competition that draws over 8000 entries each year from around South Africa and its neighbouring countries. The competition is organized jointly by the Grahamstown Foundation and the South African Council for English Education (SACEE). The competition began as a small project in 1976 when Dr Malcolm Venter, a member of the Eastern Cape branch committee of SACEE was asked to organise an event locally. The first competition attracted 119 entries and the winner received a prize of R50. Today, by comparison, the top 3 candidates receive substantial cash prizes of R33 000 (1st place); R30 000 (2nd place); R27 000 (3rd place) broadening their opportunities for possible further study or travel.
The competition seeks to enrich learners, encouraging them to explore beyond the scope of the school syllabus. It encourages critical thinking and creative writing, promoting the study of English amongst first and second English Language speakers and actively increase the participation of candidates from previously disadvantaged schools.
The De Beers English Olympiad is distinctive in that, unlike other Olympiads, it requires learners to study a prescribed text, not found within the school syllabus. 2019 saw the students study short stories, collated under the title ‘A Twist in the Tale’. Each year a different genre is studied, and a new anthology and theme compiled by SACEE. The examination is then based on this theme and anthology. On receiving the prescribed material, we set up study groups to analyse the stories and our intimate group sessions allowed us to examine the texts on a level not always possible in the structured classroom environment. The competition also gives students the opportunity to work with other students in different grades; students from years 10-12 may enter the competition and watching students, who wouldn’t normally interact in a classroom setting, quibbling over different interpretations of a text was simply wonderful.
In ‘Wings for Bulbie’ (Patrick Waldo Davids) we read of a tortured but brilliant soul, a maths teacher hounded and ostracized by a community who cannot, and will not, understand him. ‘The Luncheon’ (Somerset Maughan) sees a young writer at the mercy of the most trying lunch companion imaginable. In ‘The Suitcase’ (Es’kia Mphahlele) a young man, down on his luck, takes a chance and claims a suitcase left on the bus he is travelling in- with disastrous consequences. Many of the stories had a distinctive South African flavour but all of them were honest reflections of human nature and proved to us the timelessness of certain themes and stories.
A massive congratulations to the students who competed on Tuesday! The examination was three hours long, plus half an hour of reading time. Entering into this competition is a commitment not taken lightly and I am proud to say that all the students displayed the effort and determination necessary to stand themselves in good stead.
I encourage more students to participate next year as this competition engenders a deeper appreciation of literature by providing insight into human nature and experience. It also offers students the opportunity to bond, not as classmates or students in the same school, but as students of literature, as lovers of stories.
Alice Pryor
High School English Department Head
Year 6 Leadership Camp 2019
Last week, the Year 6’s traveled to the beautiful valleys of Franschoek where they forged many valuable memories at Big Oak Adventures.
Jumping into the river, climbing the mountains, and playing some intense dodge ball were just some of the activities the Year 6’s were excited to try. They put their fire-making skills as well as their “braai-ing” talents to the test for some delicious burgers. Another great activity taught them how to guide each other while one of them was blindfolded.
It is evident that many valuable leadership skills were acquired in the misty mountain camp.
We would like to thank everyone at Big Oak Adventure Camp for making our experience such a memorable one.
Written by:
Marisa Esterhuizen
Year 6 Teacher
