Greetings GAA Community,

I hope everyone had a restful Eid Break and spent this week getting back into routines that we have not had since before Ramadan and Spring Break.

We only have seven weeks left of this school year and they will be a busy seven weeks. Teachers are working hard to ensure that your children finish the year strong and are best prepared for the next school year. All teachers will be focused on completing the planned curriculum, conducting end-of-year assessments, and continuing their teaching focused on the social/emotional needs of the children.

Health Reminder

While there is a definite lighting up on Covid restrictions in Abu Dhabi, please check your child for any COVID related symptoms before leaving for school and keep him/her at home resting if they demonstrate:

• Fever (37.5 C or above)

• Cough

• Body aches

• Fatigue

• Shortness of breath

• Sore throat

• Runny nose

• Diarrhea

• Nausea

• Headache

• Loss of smell or taste

Daily temperature and symptoms screening is recommended before leaving the house. Individuals who exhibit symptoms or who are feeling generally unwell are required to stay home from school and are urged to see a doctor for assessment and possible COVID-19 testing if required.

Book Fair

Next week, we have our last book fair of this school year. We hope to have you, our families, join in but do have some important guidelines to ensure we continue to maintain a clear and organized system for our dismissal procedures, keeping our students safe. Please be aware of the following:

• All visitors will need to present a Green pass status on the Al Hosn app or 48 hours valid PCR test, if unvaccinated.

• Parents will be allowed into the fair during the day from 9:00 am to 2:30 pm and from 3:00 - 3:30.

• If you would like to visit the fair with your child after dismissal, you must: FIRST, pick up your child from the NORMAL pick-up point outside at dismissal time. THEN, after collecting your child from the pick-up point, enter the school with your child through the main entrance and proceed to the PYP Library for the book fair.

• IMPORTANT: Parents are NOT permitted to pick up their children from their classrooms. Please DO NOT ask your child to “meet you at the book fair”. Students will be instructed by teachers to be picked up as normal to avoid any miscommunication.

• IF YOU HAVE A CHILD IN KG and also children in Grade 1 -5, please collect all of your children from the normal pick-up points outside before coming to the Book Fair”.

Please follow the guidelines above if you plan to visit the book fair.

Sincerely,

Mike Hopaluk

Elementary Principal

Grade 1D has been busy being mathematicians and inquiring into all things shapes! We are beginning our new math module where students are learning all about 2D and 3D shapes. Students are beginning to use and understand important vocabulary when describing shapes and their attributes, such as ‘vertex’ and ‘similar’. We are finding different ways to use shapes to compose pictures, buildings, and many other wonderful things using our imaginations. Shapes are an important concept because they are directly tied to the foundation of spatial reasoning so try exploring shapes at home with your student!

Grade 2 has been inquiring into pattern in math by looking at arrays. Check out 2A’s array cities with their repeated addition sentences!

The grade 2 students got to use all the knowledge that they gained during their last unit of inquiry where the central idea was Matter has properties that can change to be used in different ways. The students worked in pairs to try to get the Lego people out from the block of ice. The focus was on creating an understanding about the changing states of matter – changing the ice from a solid into a liquid by using different tools or techniques.

The Grade 1 students got to spend some time in The Makerspace to do an investigation into what type of building would be more resistant to an earthquake. They did this using an earthquake simulator and houses that they constructed from Lego. This was to support their current unit of inquiry with the central idea: Where and how people live is influenced by their environment.

Dear Parents and Students,

Choir is starting again. The GAA upper Elementary Choir will start next week on Monday, May 16th in Ms. Massaquoi’s room 152. This means if you think you are interested in singing with other students who like to sing, YOU CAN!!! Have your parents click the link and fill out the form, which was sent by mail today. Once your form is completed I will give your name to your homeroom teacher and they will dismiss you to choir on Mondays afterschool. Please note that choir will be from 3:00-4:15. This is 15 minutes longer than last semester. Choir is only for Grade 3-5.

Ms. Massaquoi

Elementary Performing Arts Teacher

The grade 1 and 2 classes had our first in-person author visit with Julia Johnson on April 26th. It was so exciting to have our students gathered in the auditorium for the first time in a long time! Ms. Johnson is a superb storyteller, and students were so excited to meet the author of some books that they love! Julia Johnson has lived in the UAE for over 20 years, and draws inspiration from many of her stories from the beauty and history of the UAE.

• May 16-20: Book Fair

• May 18: GAA Parent Association Annual General Meeting in Planetarium

• May 18-19: In-School PCR Testing

• June 14-15: KG2 Promotion Ceremonies

• June 30: Grade 5 Promotion Ceremony

• July 1: Last Day of School