Recent Events

'Be the Change'

Year 5 Production

Congratulations to our Year 5 learners on their fantastic 'Be the Change!' performances. This production provided an authentic context for learners to inquire into the lives of different peace makers and the positive impact they had as a consequence of their actions.

When demonstrating understanding through the performing arts learners further develop their communication, social and self-management skills. We are very proud of how each gorup of homeroom learners took responsibility for their 'act' and then came together to present such a polished performance.

With a deeper understanding of how individuals can take responsibility for maintaining peace we encourage learners to be inspired to take action themselves. In what ways could you be a peace maker? How could you inspire and encourage others to have peaceful interactions with others? How could you make a positive difference in the lives of other people?

Mid -Autumn Festival 2019

The Mid-Autumn Festival 2019 falls on Friday, 13 September. It is traditionally a time to give thanks. Since the Mid-Autumn Festival is about lunar appreciation, celebrations go into full swing once the sun goes down. Moon-viewing parties are a popular way to enjoy the occasion, as family and friends sit in gardens lit by the soft glow of paper lanterns, sip tea, nibble on mooncakes.

In Nexus, we have been celebrating the festival across all year levels this week. Learners enjoyed making lantern and posters to understand the story of Chang E, the wife of Hou Yi who shot down 9 suns to save the people at that time; she drank the elixir of immortality in order to prevent it being stolen by an apprentice of Hou Yi. Learners also made knots, tasted mooncakes , narrated stories to embrace the wonderful cultural diversity in our community. Some of our learners in Year 6 joined the Bouncing Beans Playgroup to support them with their Mid-Autumn Festival activities.

Special Visitors to Kindergarten

The Kindergarten learners had a special visit from Uncle Kyle and Aunty Lin from ‘Dialogue In the Dark’. They shared with the learners what it was like to go about daily tasks without the sense of sight. Uncle Kyle and Aunty Lin brought along with them blindfolds and walking canes to give the learners the opportunity to experience what it is like to live without your sense of sight. The learners worked in pairs and guided each other around the classroom.

The Kindergarten learners also had a visit from the ‘Deaf Society’. Our special guests taught us the signs for the days of the week and a little jingle to accompany the song. The children watched as our guests signed ‘The Very Hungry Caterpillar’.

Visual Arts: Kindergarten learners make mooncakes!

Hand-made mooncakes are an ancient art form for the annual Mid-Autumn Festival. It’s the official go-to snack of the traditional Chinese holiday. Taking place on September 15, the festival marks the time of year when the moon is at its roundest and brightest (also a symbol for reunion in Chinese culture).

In the Visual Arts, this week the Kindergarten learners made their own mooncakes, linking to their current Unit of Inquiry: ‘The Senses'. It was indeed a sensory overload!

Learners used their sense of hearing to follow instructions; their sense of sight to observe the changing form of the ingredients; their sense of touch by getting messy; and the ultimate reward…..using their senses of smell and taste! The learners decided the ‘sweet’ mooncake mixture was similar to playdoh, except it’s edible!

Everyone demonstrated excellent skills in communication and cooperation and overall everyone had FUN!

Teachers Teaching Teachers

On Wednesday we saw the first round of 'Teachers Teaching Teachers' workshops for the academic year. In this round we explored:

A deeper dive into the approaches to learning.
A Window into Early Childhood
'Breaking out’ through inquiry
Learner Action & Agency: from buzzwords to belief.

These workshops gave our teachers a chance to reflect on, discuss and extend understanding of the above areas through elements of theory and practice, with a view to increasing further the engagement of our learners. Thank you to Sonya, Stephanie, Zach and Lisa for taking the time to plan, prepare and then lead the sessions. Also a big thank you for the high level of engagement seen from all teachers during the sessions - we truly are a learning community.

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