Rohan Morrison
Art & Music Department
Rohan Morrison
Grade 5s and 6s keep choosing Bieber for their music example studies so I'm trying to expand out into other songs with them. They are learning about note groupings to make chords and how to press chords on specific words as well as sustaining that during a song. This will help with their counting and timing.
For grade 5 Art we have been using methods in the form of scratch back for black paint over oil pastels. This creates an interesting night scene with neon lines of 'light' type of effect. The grade 6s have been working with tonal rendering in this case to make a mosque appear 3 dimensional. We have also began paper mosaics, as some of them will go on to work with tiles in later years. Best wishes to all!
RELIGION AND VALUES
Safiye Yargi
Dear parents and students,
Welcome back to a fun filled Term 4! I hope you all had a wonderful holiday.
The primary students have been busy right from day one! Students have been learning about the importance of morals and values in Islam, being helpful and kind to others, respecting parents,responsibilities, being truthful and honest and taking Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w) as our biggest role model. The students had lots of fun making helpful chatterboxes, kindness chains, helping hands trees and a whole lot of other activities.
Here is a snippet of what we have been doing in class:
This term, the grade 4 and 5 students were asked to complete a project about the Holy Ka'baa and the different stations of the Hajj ritual. Here are some of the fantastic work the grade 4's and 5's have done. Well done!
LOTE
Levent Ozaltin
10 Superb Psychological Advantages of Learning Another Language
Benefits of learning a second language include brain growth, staving off dementia, boosting memory, improving attention and more…
"To have another language is to possess a second soul." –Charlemagne
People used to think that learning two languages created confusion in the mind.
Far better, it was thought, to get one right than bother with two.
An even more extreme and absurd view was that learning two languages caused a kind of schizophrenia or dual personality.
Some studies did seem to back up the idea that learning two languages could be problematic; early researchers noted that bilingual people tended to have smaller vocabularies and slower access to words.
But these myths and minor disadvantages have now been overshadowed by a wave of new research showing the incredible psychological benefits of learning a second language. And these extend way beyond being able to order a cup of coffee abroad or ask directions to your hotel.
1.Brain growth
The fact that language centres in the brain actually grow is one of the major benefits of learning a second language.
The better you learn, the more those vital areas of the brain grow (MÃ¥rtensson et al., 2012).
2. Stave off dementia
Bilingualism delays Alzheimer's disease in susceptible people by as much as five years (Craik et al., 2010). Seems incredible, but the studies are continuing to support this result.
To put this in context: the effect on dementia of learning another language is much greater than anything achievable with the latest drugs.
3. Hear language better
Being bilingual can lead to improved listening skills, since the brain has to work harder to distinguish different types of sounds in two or more languages (Krizman et al., 2012).
4. Become more language sensitive
Infants in bilingual households can distinguish languages they've never even heard before (Werker & Sebastian-Galles, 2011).
Just being exposed to the different sounds in, for example, Spanish and Catalan, helps them tell the difference between English and French is another of the benefits of learning a second language.
5. Boost your memory
Babies brought up in a bilingual environment have stronger working memories than those brought up with only one language (Morales et al., 2013).
This means they are better at mental calculation, reading and many other vital skills.
6. Better multi-tasking
Bilingual people can switch from one task to another more quickly.
They show more cognitive flexibility and find it easier to adapt to unexpected circumstances (Gold et al., 2013)
7. Increased attention
Bilinguals have stronger control over their attention and are better able to limit distractions (Bialystok & Craik, 2010).
8. Double the activation
Cognitive boosts, like improved attention and better multi-tasking, may come because bilingual people have both languages activated at the same time, and must continually monitor which one is appropriate (Francis, 1999).
All that switching back and forth confers the benefits of learning a second language.
9. New ways of seeing
Learning a new language can literally change the way you see the world.
Learning Japanese, for example, which has basic terms for light and dark blue, may help you perceive the colour in different ways (Athanasopoulos et al., 2010).
10. Improve your first language
Since learning a second language draws your attention to the abstract rules and structure of language, it can make you better at your first language.
As Geoffrey Willans said: "You can never understand one language until you understand at least two."
Benefits of learning a second language
These ten are all quite apart from the benefits of immersing yourself in another culture, and of seeing your own culture from the perspective of another.
All told, you may well get something like 'a second soul' from learning another language.
[Note: some of these studies relate specifically to those who have learned two languages from very early on, but may also be relevant to new language learners.]
http://www.spring.org.uk/2013/09/10-superb-psychological-advantages-of-learning-another-language.php
Pastoral Care
Levent Ozaltin
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Pastoral Care Boys
Dear parents, welcome to Term 4.
One of our main Pastoral Care topics for this is is Honesty.
Honesty
Honesty is "being truthful in what I say and do." Honesty is more than just accurately reporting facts. It includes what you say, and it also includes what you don't say! For example, if your mom asks, "Did you eat the cookies?" you could accurately say "no" if you just ate one cookie. But that would be deceitful.
Honesty also includes your actions. For example, to cheat on a test is to pretend you know the answers when you really don't. Or to steal candy from a store is to act like you paid for it when you really didn't. Honesty means saying and doing what is true, not false.
I WILL:
DISCUSSION STARTERS:
Pastoral Care Girls
Welcome back everyone. We continue with our after school discussions and spend quality time together with the grade 6 girls.
Grade 6 Girls in Pastoral Care
We went to 'Trees Adventure' on the 29th of October and enjoyed our time high up in the trees. We did this as continuation of our reading program that took place during the term holidays. Students had reading sessions, played games and did art activities during this reading program. The winners of our reading competition were Tuana in first place, Dilara in second place and Amina in third place. Congratulations to our winners. There will also be another excursion towards the end of the year. Looking forward to spending another educational & fun Term with gr. 6 girls this Term.
Ms Nesibe