IES Schools SA Tag

The 2020 academic year began with an exciting opportunity for Marco De Mattos when he enrolled for the International Programme for Youth Development, more commonly known as The President’s Award.

Life took an unexpected turn with the advent of Covid 19 and the subsequent national lockdown. This was an incredibly difficult time for parents, teachers and especially for students who had to adapt quickly to the medium of online learning.

However, this Year 8 student would not allow any of these challenges to stand in his way and, despite the disruptions of lockdown, managed to complete all the requirements for a Bronze medal. Marco is the first student at BIS to achieve a Bronze medal in the President’s Award and we are all incredibly proud of him.

Since enrolling in the programme, Marco has acquired a ream of new skills, such as cooking and sign language. He served his community by handing out free hand sanitizer and followed an exercise regime, making sure he remained fit and active. On top of all of this, he also completed an ‘adventurous journey’ as prescribed in the requirements for a Bronze award.

Congratulations again to Marco for setting such an aspirational example for his peers.

Riaan Vosloo
High School Teacher

The Year 6’s wrote their final Exams for the year this week. It was a long, grueling process, however, they have finally made it to the end. Miss Nel and myself are both incredibly proud of the effort and dedication that the Year 6’s have put into each of their Progression Tests.

As the Year 6’s take on the daunting task of entering the High School next year, here are a few tips that may be useful:

1. Pursue activities you really enjoy.
2. Work hard.
3. Be yourself, no matter what.
4. Take care of yourself.
5. Ask for help.
6. You are loved.
7. Learn to manage your time.
8. “Let’s eat, Granny” vs “Let’s eat Granny” – Grammar saves lives!
9. Don’t be afraid to make new friends and lose old ones.
10. You will use Math after school!
11. The teachers aren’t your enemies.
12. Make the most of every experience.
13. Don’t forget how funny you used to find your KS2 teachers.
14. “A lot” is two words.
15. Miss Nel and I will be here whenever you need anything.

We have no doubt that the Year 6’s will go on to accomplish great things in the future and we cannot wait to see the amount of growth that is going to happen for each student! WE BELIEVE IN YOU!

What are the Year 6’s excited about for High School:

“We will be learning new subjects” – Maia Davies
“We will be taking part in ISA” – Treasure Daniel
“We could choose our own languages” – Alessio Lemme
“I am excited to leave early during exams and be more independent” – Iviwe Matakata
“I am excited about looking up to new people” – Saumya Maharaj
“I am excited to learn new things and to be more responsible and independent in my learning” – Faith Chivaka

Brittney Hakime
Year 6 Teacher

 

In Year 1 we have been working on the school Ipads. In our Geography lesson we used a program called, ‘ARMAKA.’ This is a fun, educational game where you can create your own world and put what you want into it.

We have been following the travels of Barnaby Bear around the world this term and we were able to create a new virtual place for him to visit using this program.  The students had lots of fun creating underwater scenes, or a Japanese scene, a busy day in London and many more, and during the Barnaby dress up day they could walk around and explore the spaces they created.

Many families have tablets and devices at home and this program can be used by the whole family to have fun and get creative together. All you need is some space!

Charlotte Cronje
Year 1 Teacher

During the last two weeks we have been learning more about pets in Pre-Reception. Pets encourage self-esteem, responsibility and nurturing by handling, caring for and in some cases, playing with the pet.

There are many benefits to having a pet in the family. Pets teach students very important life lessons. Students and pets enjoy playing as well as having a cuddle during nap time. Students need to understand the responsibility to look after a pet. A pet gives unconditional support when a student is sad, angry or upset. A pet can teach the student to trust the pet. When the student takes care of the pet, they learn to be kind to others through taking care of the pet’s basic needs.

Other skills students learn includes respect when they learn the boundaries when the pet is eating or sleeping. Students would also learn to be patient when teaching their pet a new trick. Students growing up with a pet do so with more empathy towards animals and more empathy in general. When pets show their unconditional love, it boosts the student’s self-esteem.

To supplement the theme of learning about pets, we did various art activities and the students had the opportunity to draw their own pet or a pet they’d like to have. We also did a numeracy activity where we had to count the pets.

Martie van Dyk
Pre-Reception Teacher

Exams can be stressful. Taking time to prepare for your exams can make them much less stressful and enable you to focus better. This article contains advice on how to prepare for your exams.

One should not attempt to study without first knowing what papers you will write each day. Knowing the date of each exam will enable you to plan your study time and ensure that you have enough time to revise for each exam. Download and print your exam timetable and put it on display in a prominent spot to help you stay on track.

Compiling a study timetable will help you to manage your time. Find out what you need to study for each exam and ensure that you give yourself plenty of study time for each subject. Be prepared to adapt your timetable should something unexpected occur.

Prepare a space to study that is comfortable and free of distractions. Try to avoid studying on your bed, as you may fall asleep! Turn your phone off, put it in another room or, if you don’t wish to do this, set your WhatsApp status to ‘studying’ so that friends will know that you will take a little longer to get back to them because you need to focus.

Varying subjects and study techniques will help you to avoid boredom. Try summaries, flash cards, key words, mind mapping and mnemonics. It is okay to use a variety of techniques, as some are better suited to particular types of content than others. If you have been making study notes throughout the year and have found them to be effective, use them to give yourself a head start.

Using the correct exam technique and being able to finish your exam within the allocated time are also very important. Practicing past papers will help you to master both, and will also help you to better understand what the examiner will be looking for. The CIE website and PapaCambridge are good places to look.

I wish you all the best for your exams and I hope that you have a safe and enjoyable holiday.

Sheila Marais
High School Teacher

I want to see Egypt and raft down the Nile.

I want to see all of their stones in a pile.

I’ll meet an old Pharaoh and wear his cool hat

Or eat with the woman who knew the first cat.

But while I wait (since it might be a while)

I’ll dress my dog up in that white mummy style (by Steve Hanson)

And that is exactly what our Year 3’s did and boy did they dress up to the nines!  After weeks of learning all about the history, geographical features, Egyptian society, pharaohs and pyramids, it was finally time to hold our iconic Egypt Day!  We were graced by the presence of pharaohs, queens and even a few mummies.

Our day kicked off with an Egyptian Best Dressed Fashion Show.  The students strutted their outfits to the tune of ‘Walk Like an Egyptian’ and our esteemed judges chose the three best dressed Egyptians.

After all that hard work it was time to eat. Each student was supplied with a specialised food box and feasted on a selection of middle eastern/Egyptian cuisine.  There were dates, falafel balls, mini pitas, humus, grapes and a juice to quench their thirst. YUM!

Once our Egyptians were satiated it was time to do some belly dancing with Nadia from the School of Belly Dance. Suffice it to say, that we DO have some VERY talented male belly dancers!

The day ended with the Year 3’s finally settling down to watch the iconic movie, Prince of Egypt. A fabulous day was had by all and we had some exhausted Egyptians making their way home!

Mandy Goch
Year 3 Teacher

This term in Geography we learnt about the travels of Barnaby Bear. On Friday, the 6th of November 2020, we held an ‘International Barnaby Bear Day’, where we celebrated the places that he has travelled to. Despite the rain, we were still able to have fun and enjoy the day.

The Year 1’s came to school dressed up in the clothes worn by the people in a country of their choice. They all looked wonderful, celebrating their own cultures as well as the cultures and heritage of other countries.

Each Year 1 student had a chance to present and talk about their selected country, the culture, what is found in the country, the people and most of all, the food they eat. Some children brought food from their chosen country. It was really interesting seeing what they brought, and hearing what they had to say about each country.

For some of the activities during our special ‘International Day’, Mrs. Cronje read stories from London and the famous landmarks, Mrs. Cordner taught the students how to do line dancing to the famous song, ‘Achy Breaky Heart’, and the students coloured in pictures from Mexico.

It was a lovely day and we all learnt so much! Thank you to the students and the parents for all the effort they put in to make the day so memorable.

Wendy Menton
Year 1 Teacher

For the next few weeks the Foundation Stage students are learning about Pets.

This week, one of my Pre-Reception students, Jan Pani (5 years old), brought his hamster Matt to school for the day. He showed the other students how he cares for his pet. We were very entertained by the little hamster, even though he slept most of the day. Jan and his sister Mia also have a pet rabbit called Hiccup. They wished for a bunny for Christmas. Mia wrote a letter to Santa asking for one. On Christmas day they found Hiccup in their garden. He is so cute! Jan said he would also LOVE to have a tarantula as a pet, I am not sure what his mother would think of that!

Aaron April (5 years old) showed us his pet fish and parrot. His fish are all called Nemo. His parrot’s name is Sky. Sky loves dancing and singing. The April family have had Sky sins Aaron’s birth and Sky and Aaron are growing up together. Aaron also loves horses and goes riding as often as he can.

Jadey Howes (5 years old) has two dogs, Axle and Harley! She says they are brother and sister Staffies. She helps her mom and dad every day to take care of them by feeding them dog food and filling up their water bowls. She likes to brush their short hair with the doggie brush and gives them both BIG, tight hugs. Harley, the black dog, likes scratches on her tummy, while Axle gets very jealous and always pushes his sister out of the way so that he can get all of Jadey’s attention. Jadey loves both her dogs so much and likes to give them doggie treats when they have been very good. They have so much fun playing together outside!

We spoke about all the different pets you can look after. The students were amused and fascinated by all the animals. Pet animals can range from the usual ones we know of, to some unique ones. Some of the students chose to have fish, birds, a guinea pig, mice, rabbits, a tortoise or even a snake as a pet.

Pets provide so many benefits for children!
– Feeding and caring for a pet encourages childhood responsibility.
– They provide a connection to nature and teach respect for other living things.
– Sharing the love and care of a family pet forges an additional common bond among siblings.
– Cuddling a pet is knowns to reduce stress, loneliness and anxiety.

Cindy Nunan
Pre-Reception Teacher