Dear Parents,
As we reach the final week of the semester, we can look back on the numerous achievements and events of this term and also look ahead to the holidays and the new semester starting in January. We all wish you all the very best for Christmas and the New Year.
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Harvard – Duke – Stanford
This weekend our D2 students received the first set of news regarding university admissions for 2014. We are very pleased to announce that Lisa Chille has been awarded a place at Harvard University. This is the third year in a row that an ISM student has gained admission to Harvard as Lisa follows in the footsteps of Kennedy Mmasi and Samwel Emmanuel.
Congratulations also to Paschalia Nsato who has gained admission to Duke University in North Carolina.
And also to Moses Swai who has been offered a place at Stanford University in California.
Although financial details are not yet finalised, it is likely that all three students will receive substantial or full scholarships to these three extremely prestigious universities in the United States. Other students will hear news of their university applications later in the school year.
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Reports
Reports for all students will be issued on Thursday, 19th December. EC-D1 students will receive full semester reports; students in D2 will receive interim reports and will get full reports in March.
If you wish to receive a digital copy of your child’s report, please email Totty Aris on
. Soft copies will be emailed out on 20th December.
There are some students for whom the fees for quarter two have not yet been fully paid – I am sorry that we cannot issue reports to students in this situation.
As usual, we will be holding parent-teacher conferences for parents of secondary students in Karibu Hall on Friday, 20th December from 10:35am to 12 noon. This is a ideal opportunity for parents to meet their child’s teachers and discuss any questions or issues with them. We look forward to seeing you.
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End of Term Arrangements
On Friday, 20th December, there will be a school assembly from 9:15am to 10:15am. We hope to see many parents at the assembly. Students are free to leave school from 10:15am. If you are booking flights for your child on 20th December, please do so very soon as flights are filling up for that day. Boarders need to return on 14th January, so why not book the return flight at the same time? Please send flight details to Rosemary Bango on
as soon as possible.
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Semester Two
Looking ahead to the new year, boarders should return to school on Tuesday, 14th January and all classes start at 7:30am on Wednesday, 15th January. Our D2 students will start their mock (practice) examinations on the following day, Thursday, 16th January.
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I’d Do Anything For You
Thank you to everyone who was involved with this wonderful show. The primary students did a tremendous job waiting quietly backstage for their entrance and then sang their hearts out. Meanwhile our secondary students stepped up to the challenge both onstage and backstage to make it the tremendous performance it was, on both nights. Well done everyone and thank you to the many people who made this show happen, especially the show’s director, Totty Aris, the musical director, Susan Jacob, and thanks to Louise O’Brien for her choreography and support in many areas.
Photos of the musical are available to view or download at www.ismoshi.org/oliver
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School Office Holidays
The school office will be closed from 24th December to 5th January inclusive. However if you need to get in touch with the school during the break, please feel free to email on
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Secondary Sports & Outdoor Pursuits
I hope that all parents of secondary students have received the details of the student signup for Sports and for Outdoor Pursuits. These were emailed to parents from Marika Farrell and Isaac Foya a couple of days ago. The links for completing sign-up are:
Sports: www.ismoshi.org/sports2
Outdoor Pursuits: www.ismoshi.org/op2
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D1 Raft Race
On Tuesday December 10th, we had our annual D1 Raft Race. Over the last 3 weeks, the D1 students have been researching, designing and building their rafts, in anticipation of the race. On Tuesday, our teams raced in 3 different heats, with the winner of each heat advancing to the final! The finals saw 3 great rafts pitted against each other, with the Rafter Rebels (Frieke, Milou, Valentina, Twan and Amari) crowned the Champions!
Congratulations to all teams, and to the P6s who were sitting on the rafts.
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Basketball
On Tuesday, 19 November, the ISM Leopards Boys Basketball Team hosted two teams to tip-off the season. In the friendly confines of Karibu Hall our 2013-14 campaign got off to a fast start.
In the first contest the Leopards hosted a team from MUCCoBs. During the first half ISM’s senior boys demonstrated their ability to stay with college age players as they utilized full court pressure and teamwork. At the half-time break the Leopards were in the lead 14-13. During the second half of action a number of Leopard turnovers resulted in fast break opportunities for the MUCCoBS players. When the dust settled the hole which our team found themselves was just too deep to overcome. The final score: ISM 18 – MUCCoBS 29.
STAT LINE: Amari Chenault (1 point, 3 rebounds); Bhargav Patel (2 rebounds); Dan Msangi (4 points, 5 rebounds, 1 blocked shot, 1 steal); David Kapaya (4 rebounds); John Msafiri (6 points, 4 rebounds, 1 blocked shot); Joseph Wagoner (1 rebound); Leo Irmscher (2 points, 4 rebounds, 1 steal); Lui Wolstencroft (1 rebound); Siamito Oberressl (5 points, 1 rebound, 1 steal)
Shortly following the game with MUCCoBS our team took to the court again. This time the Leopards found themselves playing against another secondary school – JK Nyerere. From the onset of the contest it was very clear that ISM was the superior team in all facets of the game. The Leopard ballers showed a great deal of discipline, unity, and ability posting a final score of ISM 59 – JKN 15. The team appreciates all fellow students who came into Karibu Hall to watch the game. Our fans provided a positive atmosphere of excitement which we hope will carry over to Sports Weekend.
STAT LINE: Amari Chenault (1 rebound, 2 steals); Bhargav Patel (10 points, 4 rebounds, 2 steals); Dan Msangi (14 points, 7 rebounds, 1 steal); David Kapaya (2 points, 6 rebounds); John Msafiri (6 points, 3 rebounds, 1 steal); Joseph Wagoner (5 points, 1 steal); Leo Irmscher (8 points, 5 rebounds); Lui Wolstencroft (3 points); Paul Rupia (3 points, 1 rebound); Siamito Oberressl (8 points)
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Rugby
On Wednesday 20th November, an ISM 7-a-side rugby team played a practice match against Kili-Warriors, a team made up of Mkombozi students. The skills levels on show were often high, with both teams showing a willingness to run the ball from all areas of the pitch and tackling and recycling possession effectively. The game was very competitive from the off, with both teams very physically committed. Kili-Warriors scored first and converted the try. ISM were able to score before half-time, without converting. After the break, ISM were again able to score, but were unable to prevent the opposition from scoring twice again to take the match.
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Football
Bolton Wanderers’ Football Programmes
ISM was very lucky to have a representative of the Bolton Wanderers Football Club come and speak to our future Football Stars. He talked about 2 overseas programs they offer, one in Dubai and one in England. If you are interested in your son joining one of these programmes, please email Ms. Farrell (
). Spaces fill up fast!
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M4 History
M4 History students experienced first-hand their study of the the First World War by researching on-line at www.cwgc.org/find-a-cemetery/cemetery/12017/MOSHI%20CEMETERY and then visiting the Moshi Commonwealth Graves cemetery. 90+ World War I veterans are buried there and students studied patterns and individual grave plots carefully. Well done M4 students on this interesting field trip!
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M4/M5 Diploma Information
This Wednesday we will be running a information session for our M4 & M5 students to gain a better understanding of what the Diploma programme looks like at ISM Moshi Campus. Wednesday: 2.20-3.00pm
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Departures
We are now preparing to say goodbye to Anna and Mark Dombkins who will be leaving ISM at the end of this semester to return to Australia. Anna and Mark have been the major strengths in our boarding programme and in the mathematics department respectively, but both have worked in many other areas of the school, most particularly as Counsellor (Anna) and as MYP Coordinator (Mark). We wish them all the very best for the future, and look forward to welcoming Coenie and Val Wesselink next month.
We are also saying goodbye to two others who have invested a lot in ISM. Mr Applegate has been here throughout this semester as a student teacher and has made an excellent contribution to the school. Louise O’Brien joined us in October as a volunteer and has committed fully to the life of the campus. We wish them both well for their future careers.
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Brownies
The Brownies will make their Brownie promise in front of their parents on Thursday, 19th December at 3:30pm.
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Diploma News
The D2 mock exam schedule has been finalized and will run as from Thursday January 16th and continue for eight school days. D2 students know that this upcoming school break must be focused on many hours of revision for these critical exams that tend to be a close indicator of what will happen during the official May 2014 IB DP exams. A guide such as this may be of use: http://learnline.cdu.edu.au/studyskills/studyskills/revision.html.
We look forward to seeing nearly all DP parents – we hope – at the parent-teacher meeting next Friday December 20th. Both for D1 and D2 parents these end-of-semester meetings are crucially important.
This week more D2 TOK presentations, Visual Art mock exams and English orals took place.
Many DP students marked the passing of Nelson Mandela by watching the memorial service on the Social Centre TV on Tuesday afternoon where we had live coverage on-going. One D2 History student’s words summed it up: “I think he may have been the greatest African man that ever lived.” DP History students debated these three questions: For what reasons is it accurate to describe him as a Great Man? How did Mandela emerge after 27 years in prison to be free of spite? Identify several aspects of his character that are worth emulating? They also read his obituary – www.nytimes.com/2013/12/06/world/africa/nelson-mandela_obit.html
A 2011 graduate visited this week and commented that his IB DP education prepared him tremendously well for post-secondary study. In particular, the Extended Essay and considerable written work in all classes enabled him to easily adjust to university life demands.
DP Parents would do us a service by reviewing all aspects of the grade report which teachers spent considerable time preparing. D1s receive a full report and D2s an interim report. We stagger the reports so you may recall that D2s had a full report in October and will have their next one in March.
This is a reminder if you can assist us and ensure your son or daughter remains present until classes finish on the 20th and make sure they return on time and are at school for the first lessons on January 15th.
Numerous DP students played major roles in this week’s wonderful musical ‘Oliver’ directed by ISM Deputy Head Totty Aris. The D1 actor Amari Chenault, D2 actor AJ Otieno and D2 actress Neema Ntilatwa’s performances were particularly impressive. Backstage support was provided by a dedicated team of DP students including D2 students Paul Rupia, Daniel Smith, Shineni de Haan, Daniel Gaudence and D1 student Etir Vogt, Beatrice Marandu and Zishaan Dawood. The musical pit orchestra included ISM teachers Madeline Leno, Alastair Brandon and Nina Bigg as well as DP students Lucky Yona, Valentina Brau and Sofia Kalaitzakis. DP music teacher Susan Jacob’s work preparing all the music for the performance was quite a feat and its quality was apparent. DP Geograpy teacher Hazel Ndong and MYP English/Drama teacher Mr Juma made huge contributions to this event too. Well done all!
NY Times Op-ed writer Thomas Friedman eloquently highlights the keys to success in tomorrow’s world and indirectly describes why the IB DP education is such an exceptional degree. Go to www.nytimes.com/2013/12/08/opinion/sunday/friedman-cant-we-do-better.html
Feel free to contact me with any questions or concerns.
Sincerely,
Rick Fitzpatrick
Diploma Programme Coordinator
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Early Childhood Preview
We are very sad to be saying goodbye to Jabari, Jemima, Shay and Charlie this week as they leave to return to Australia. We are also saying a sad good bye to Alex who will return to Sweden. We are losing almost a third of our class and they will all leave a big gap in the life of the EC at ISM. We wish them a smooth transition to their new schools and we will treasure our happy memories of their time here.
Unit of Inquiry
This week we will wrap up the unit of inquiry on ‘Our senses’. Last week we began thinking about our sense of smell and will continue with this early next week, after which we will spend some time inquiring with our sense of taste. We will play some taste guessing games and make some cupcakes. We will brainstorm words to describe tastes and examine taste buds and how each part of our tongue detects different tastes. We will also try to think about our third line of inquiry, ‘How our senses work together’ as smell and taste are special partners.
Literacy
Our focus this week will be writing holiday and farewell cards to each other. Many families are celebrating at this time of the year for many reasons and it is a good time to think about card making and helping children to write simple greetings.
Numeracy
We will make a graph of our favourite food this week as well as continue with simple addition and mental maths skills.
Important notice
On Thursday we will have our holiday party, starting at 10.30am. Please look for a note coming home on Monday of what you can send in for this party. We can also use this time to say farewell to the Dombkins children and Alex.
Don’t forget swimming as usual on Monday. The final library session will be Tuesday and all books must be returned.
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P1/2 Preview
Farewell
Our dear friend Edvin will be leaving on Friday. He is returning to Sweden. He has been a fantastic member of the class and we wish him all the best.
Oliver – The Musical
WOW! What a great show! Well done to all the children in P1 and 2.
Homework and Reading Books
There will be no homework packet in the final week. Thank you for all your support with learning spellings and completing homework packets.
Unit of Inquiry – Going Places
Central Idea: People move around the world for different reasons.
We will wrap up this unit and complete a summative assessment task. The children will plan a journey to a place they would like to go. They will consider transport, what clothes they will need and what they would like to do there.
Art and Craft
We will have lots of different craft activities. We will make happy holiday cards for the primary post box.
Library Books
All library books must be returned please. We have just a few to collect in.
Club Sheets
A letter about clubs went out last Tuesday. Only a few slips have been returned. Please return the reply slip if you haven’t already indicating Quarter 3 club choices.
Class Party
We will have a class party on Thursday 19th December. The children can wear their own clothes. Could you please bring in a small plate of food to share. Fruit juice and water will be provided.
What to bring to school:
Everyday: A hat for playtime, a healthy snack, and a water bottle.
Timetable:
Monday
All reading books will be collected in
Tuesday
Swimming (swimming costume, towel, flip flops/crocs, swim aids such as floaters if necessary. Goggles and sun cream are optional.)
Thursday
Class party
End of semester reports will be issued.
Friday
Final day of school. We will start at normal time, 7.30am. We will have an assembly at 9.15 till 10.15. Children are then free to go home!
Have a happy and safe holiday!
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P2/3 Preview
Thank you for all the wonderful support that you gave last week. The children had a fantastic time participating in the musical. When we reflected on the experience, many spoke of being proud to perform in front of their parents!
We have a lot that we need to do in the week ahead, particularly with wrapping up on a very enjoyable Unit. We would like to celebrate all of the learning that we’ve done since August with a little Holiday party on Thursday. I’ll send a note home on Monday about what to bring. Also, don’t forget that on Friday, classes will end at 10:15.
Unit of Inquiry – Central Idea: Images and ideas from our imagination can be expressed in many ways.
Students listened to music that evoked various emotions and drew pictures accordingly. We’ve also enjoyed interpretive dance with Ms Louise. We will do a bit more with both of these activities. We will have an assessment to see if their understanding of the concept of imagination has improved.
Language – Students will take the Imagine story of their choice through the process of editing and publishing. The students did a wonderful job of presenting fairy tales in play-format in front of the class and have asked to do it again. The Spelling chunk of the week is -ine.
Math – Both groups will continue with fractions this week. They have done very well with dividing shapes into equal parts and identifying fractions. They are learning the terms numerator and denominator.
Our Timetable: Monday: Library, please bring your books and bag. New homework sent home
Wednesday: PE, remember to wear your sneakers and a hat and bring your water bottle.
Thursday: Swimming, bring your suit and a towel. Reading books swapped out, bring your Reading Log as well. Holiday Party!
Friday: Spelling test and return completed homework. Early dismissal.
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P3/4 Preview
Congratulations to all the children who participated in the school production of “Oliver”. Everyone performed their hearts out and had a lot of fun in the process and I was very proud of the P3/4s in particular. What stars in the making!
It is hard to believe that this is the last week of the term and we are half-way through the academic year. As I seem to say so often, but mean most sincerely, “time sure flies when you’re having fun” and I love teaching your children at ISM!
A reminder that there will be no clubs during the last week of term.
This is what our learning in class will look like this week:
UOI
Unit 3 – How we Express Ourselves – “Setting the Stage”.
Central Idea – The arts are an avenue for creative expression.
Lines of inquiry – Aspects of the arts
Creative expression through the arts
The role of art in society
We had a really great trip to the Cultural Heritage Centre in Arusha last week. It really is an amazing place and well worth a visit. We saw some stunning examples of art in its many varied forms and learnt some really interesting information pertaining to visual arts, history and culture. So much of what we have been learning in class tied in with what we saw and heard and it was all perfectly pitched at our level. This week we will be looking at the role of art in society and working on our summative assessment tasks. The students will be creating a poem, play, dance, song, piece of music or a picture and then explaining what it expresses.
Maths – Miss Jann’s Group Fractions – identifying parts of a whole. Equivalent fractions. Improper fractions and mixed numbers.
Miss Debbie’s Group Fractions
Language – Poetry – autobiographical poetry and outrageous rhyming poetry.
Narrative writing.
Spelling – group 1 words that end in -ous e.g. famous, disastrous group 2 -ei that sounds like “ee” or “i” e.g. ceiling, height group 3 Consonant blends fr, gr, pr e.g. frog, grub, pram
Reminders
Every day: School T-shirts or polo shirts, zip bags (reading book, reading log, spelling book), a healthy snack for break time.
Collection – Thank you for all the donations so far. Please continue to send plastic bottle tops (any colour) and polystyrene trays to school for an art project that I have in mind.
Monday: No homework this week, except for spelling and reading, because it’s the last week of term.
Thursday: Spelling test
Library. Please remember library bags and any books that are due back for return/renewal.
First semester school reports sent home.
Friday: 9.15am Final Assembly in Karibu Hall. All parents and family welcome.
10.30am Children are free to go home. For those who cannot be collected early there will be supervision in our classroom until 12.00pm
Looking forward to a great last week of term together.
To those who celebrate it, best wishes for Christmas and the New Year.
To everyone, have a wonderful, relaxing holiday and if you are going away, travel safely.
Miss Jann
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P5/6 Preview
Last week witnessed a fraction bombardment and the beginning of our summative task for the third unit. In addition there was the production. I was very proud of the class both for their performance and their behaviour behind the scenes. We are all tired and looking forward to the break at the end of this last week.
UOI – ‘Moving On’
Central Idea: Migration has a wide range of effects on those who migrate and the indigenous populations they encounter.
The children will finish their summative tasks on Monday. We will update portfolio folders on Tuesday. On Wednesday and Thursday we will inquire into some extraordinary animal, bird and insect migrations!
Reading and Writing
The children will research a given creature and take notes before recording these in a more formal presentation.
Maths
We will look at multiplying with fractions before comparing fractions, decimals and percentages. Incidentally, the children have found a brilliant online game which helps their understanding of the latter concept. It is called Tree Frog Treasure. Ask your child about it. It is on a website called brainpop.com – if you allow them time on the internet this weekend please suggest they play this game for at least some of that time.
P.E. – is on Wednesday and Thursday. Thursday will once again be swimming.
Library – is on Monday. Please remind the children to bring back books for exchange/renewal.
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IN THIS ISSUE
University Admissions
Reports
End of Term
Semester 2
Oliver
Holidays
Sports/OP
D1 Raft Race
Basketball
Rugby
Football
M4 History
Diploma Info
Staff
Brownies
CONTACT US
International School Moshi
PO Box 733
Moshi, Tanzania
Tel: +255 27 2755005
Fax: +255 736 605320
Email:
Mobile:
+255 767 534766
MEET US
If you wish to meet with either Keiron White (Head of Campus) or Totty Aris (Deputy Head of Campus), you are welcome to make an appointment to do so at any mutually convenient time. We also have an “open door” time each week during which parents are welcome to drop in without an appointment:
Keiron:
Tuesdays 8am-9am
Totty:
Fridays 8am-9am
NOTES
This newsletter has been sent to you from International School Moshi.
if your email address changes or if you would like me to add another email address to this mailing list.
Keiron White
Head of Moshi Campus
International School Moshi provides a world-class education through a challenging international curriculum in a dynamic environment. We are committed to developing balanced global citizens who are empowered to act responsibly in a complex world.
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This newsletter published by International School Moshi (Moshi Campus) © 2013