MSHS
Written by Mr. Alex
Welcome to Infobyte #20! We have much to celebrate and share as we approach the end of another remarkable academic year.
First and foremost, let us extend our congratulations to the Class of 2023 on their graduation! We applaud their hard work, determination, and achievements. Well done!
We would also like to express our deep gratitude to the entire Sinarmas World Academy community for your support and the success of the Semester 2 examination session. The collective effort and dedication were truly remarkable. Together, we have created an environment that fosters growth, knowledge, and excellence. The commitment to our students' education is invaluable, and we are immensely grateful.
A special mention must be made to our outstanding MSHS teachers. Their hard work in creating the exam papers, invigilating the exams, marking the papers, and providing constructive feedback to our students have been instrumental in their academic development. The teachers’ dedication to the kids’ growth and success is truly commendable, and we thank all MSHS faculty wholeheartedly for your tireless efforts.
As we look ahead, the next few weeks leading to the end of the academic year will be filled with excitement, activities, and action. We encourage all members of the Sinarmas World Academy community to maintain focus, enthusiasm, and perseverance as we work towards finishing this year in a spectacular way. Let us make the most of these remaining weeks, engaging in enriching experiences, and creating lasting memories together
DP Update
Written by Ms. Andrea
The countdown begins!
Our students, who have persevered through the challenging International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP), are now on the brink of their well-earned graduation. It's time to prepare for the grand celebration that awaits them. The air is filled with excitement and anticipation as they meticulously plan every detail, from their stylish attire to the heartfelt speeches they'll deliver. This important milestone in their lives calls for joyous festivities, surrounded by friends, family, and teachers who have guided them along this transformative journey.
So, let us join hands in supporting these remarkable individuals as they prepare to proudly walk across the stage, ready to embrace the recognition and pride that comes with a successful completion of the IBDP.
In the meantime, our grade 11 students have kicked off their semester exams in a format similar to the Final IB Exams. It's a fantastic way to get them acquainted with the context and protocol they'll encounter during their upcoming year in the IBDP program. It's all about practicing early to ensure they're well-prepared for the challenges ahead. By familiarizing themselves with the exam format now, they'll be able to navigate it with confidence when the time comes. It's an excellent initiative to set them up for success in the IBDP journey. Let's cheer them on as they tackle these practice exams!
English Department
Written by Mr Daniele
In preparation for the final curtain on an excellent year replete with post-pandemic new beginnings, students looked back to an old classic written by the Bard at the start of the 17th century. Students were given an opportunity to improvise the sound (courtesy of G7 Adriana) and fury (courtesy of G7 Bridget) that accompanied Sebastian’s conniving scheme (played by G7 Qiara) on Caliban’s island. Such theatrics were, of course, part of their active revision as they prepared for the G7 exam on Shakespeare’s Tempest.
The Sound (Adriana) and Fury (Bridget)
The Schemer (Qiara)
Science And ICT Department
Written by Benjamin
Science
It is a bundle of joy to accompany grade 6 science students and watch the fruits of labor coming from their science project. The science project is part of the competition that will be held during the Science, Technology, Engineering, Artificial Intelligence and Mathematics (STEAM) Fair in a month’s time.
The aim of the project is to inculcate the spirit of scientific discoveries, applying the knowledge of science together with mathematics with the use of technology, engineering applications, and embed AI into real-life applications. At the same time, students will be exposed implicitly and explicitly about ATL skills such as communication, social, research, thinking and management which will be beneficial for their growth as a middle school learner.
Here’s a glimpse of the presentation and preparation process towards STEAM Fair. We are looking forward to the final showcase for fellow SWA community members.
Rachelle, Tiffany, Angellina, Wei on their project to extract orange pigments.
Chemistry
Term 4 Chemistry practicals were some of the most exciting ones for the subject Chemistry. Grade 9 and 10 students embarked themselves on a journey to understand the fundamental concepts of electrons and energy levels when they carried out practical flame tests for metals. Some of the inquiry questions set upon the beginning of the lesson include why do the elements burn in different colours, how do metals undergo chemical changes when they are set on flames, and how can we apply these concepts in a real life context.
For DP1 students, for Term 4 unit: organic chemistry, they were handed the chance to perform sophisticated mechanisms to synthesize aspirin drugs. Students learnt about the history of aspirin dated way back to the ancient Sumeria civilisation and the discoveries of its painkiller functions by people through the act of chewing bark of willow trees. Some of the most synthesised drugs for the world today were also synthesised by our DP1 students in order to learn about reactions, mechanisms and synthetic pathways.
From the left: Aimee, Avni, and Le performed a flame test for Lithium. Gary and Erwin synthesised aspirin drugs with the help of a fume hood/chamber.
On the left: Matthew is washing the aspirin before re-crystallisation. On the right: flame emission qualitative analysis table with diagrams created by Chelsea (G10) to help her peer for revision.
Mathematics Department
Mathematical Transformation
Written by Mr. Emerson and Ms. Olive
Transformation is a topic in International Mathematics starting with Grade 8 students learning the basics, while Grade 9 students learn at an intermediate level. In Grade 8, students have a project on using transformation to create art. They recently completed a Batik Design project, where they created their own Batik canvases, showcasing Indonesian culture and using geometrical transformations. Batik is a traditional Indonesian fabric made using wax and dye to create unique patterns. The students learned about the cultural significance of Batik, identifying traditional motifs and exploring the use of symbolism in designs. They then applied mathematical concepts, like geometrical transformations, to create their design and pattern. The project promoted creativity and critical thinking while also fostering an appreciation for cultural diversity. The Batik Design project was a success, highlighting the students' artistic abilities and their understanding of Indonesian culture and mathematical concepts.
Meanwhile, in Grade 9, they explore transformation as a possible future career in architecture or engineering. Transformation geometry is the study of how shapes can be transformed, such as rotated, reflected, or translated. It is an important concept in many fields, including computer graphics, robotics, physics, and engineering. Knowing transformation geometry can help to design and create models, simulations, and animations, which are essential in fields such as architecture, game development, and virtual reality. In addition, transformation geometry can also be useful in optimising manufacturing processes and designing new products. Therefore, a strong understanding of transformation geometry can give an edge in a variety of careers that require technical skills and creativity.
Below are some of the works they have created and reflections they have made from their projects.
Kimberlee (G8)
Reynaldo (G8)
En Ni (G9)
“My floor plan is for a large living room in a mansion; the entire design is very simple because mansion decorations typically include a lot of furniture, making it difficult for the viewer to easily distribute and grow weary of seeing them. Making a floor plan, in my opinion, is crucial since it may increase productivity, teamwork, and work efficiency. In some cases, I even believe that colour and design choices can have a big impact on the atmosphere of the entire space.
Starbucks is a good example of the differences between using light and dark tile designs in a cafe. Starbucks always uses dark tile, and many students enjoy studying there (which is very common in Taiwan) because the dark floor and the entire environment give people a sense of calmness and also a little pressure. I believe this is the key to understanding how the dark environment affects people's productivity, which is why so many people enjoy working there. On the other hand, we rarely see individuals working at cafes since the light environment makes it difficult for people to concentrate, which lowers productivity. Therefore, creating a well-organised floor plan for a designer or architect impacts their career a lot.
Understanding transformation geometry is important for a wide range of careers, from design and architecture to robotics and automation, computer graphics and animation, and physics and engineering. It provides a powerful tool for solving complex problems and creating innovative solutions in various fields. for this summative assessment, I got that actually seems useless but it is something that we may face/use a lot in daily life as a student. For example, when our group was creating the 3D model for our IDU project through “Tinkercad”, I recognised that those buildings look really complicated from the outside, but when we observe deeper, most of the shapes were from the simplest cylinders, cubes, spheres, cuboids, pyramids, etc then combined together.”
Crystian (G9)
“My floor plan is a design that I made that is supposed to be used as a type of kitchen floor design as it contains a lot of different elements (mostly shapes). My floor plan matters because if I wanted to be a designer of any sort, I can use this as a stepping stone on how I can improve and what small detailed mistakes that I have made that affect the design, this is because in my own opinion, I think the design that I could have made could have some extra elements added into it that does not have edges as the floor pattern that I have made contained a lot of elements with edges.
In my opinion, the knowledge of transformation geometry is really important when creating designs as we need to know what type of translation can be seen from the design and certain aspects of it such as the centre, invariant line, etc. Although I do not think the knowledge to apply transformation that can be considered simple (reflection, rotation) is as important as the rest (stretch, enlargement), because in my opinion simple transformations that mostly contains reflection and rotation are mostly based on common sense since it is easy to identify the type of transformation and the aspects of it.
Although these aspects require the knowledge of transformation geometry, I do not think that identifying these aspects is important as a career. I can use my knowledge of transformations to move forward in my life since I can learn more about graphing and not only will this help in designing shapes and patterns, there is a high chance that it can help me with designing structures, and more complicated projects. Overall, I think my floor plan is quite simple and I think I have done a great job at it, and though the career path that I want to follow will not be based on transformation or any shapes/designing, I do think it is quite enjoyable to create my own pattern.”
Chinese Department
Written by Ms. Yuan
G7 CLA 4-6 has learned the topic of graduation which is related to the unit of Identity. In this unit, students learned new words, made sentences and wrote an essay about introducing the graduation ceremony. In order to enhance the understanding of how a graduation ceremony process works, G7 CLA 4-6 students presented an oral presentation of a graduation ceremony which included principal remarks, thanks to parents and teachers, performance, certificate issued, and group photos.
Indonesian Department
Written by Ms. Marcel
“We need technology in every classroom and in every student and teacher’s hand, because it is the pen and paper in our time, and it is the lens through which we experience much of our world” - David Warlick.
Technology is an invaluable tool for studying and actively engaging in the learning process. Given that MSHS students have grown up in a tech-savvy generation, they are familiar with its use. Our goal is to integrate technology with the learning of the Indonesian language. Grade 6 students are currently utilizing Tinkercad, an application that allows them to construct personalized house models according to their preferences for the future. Following the completion of their models, students are required to compose descriptive texts about their houses in Bahasa Indonesia. To culminate the project, they present their houses through CoSpaces, providing a virtual house tour. By combining technology and language learning, students can enhance their skills in an engaging and interactive manner.
House model by Minhee
House model by Yusuf
Individuals & Society Department
Written by Ms. Aleksandra
Standard of Living
During Term 4, G8 (Individuals and Societies) covered the global issue of Standard of Living as a level of available income, goods, and services in a place, and discussed the case studies related to the Dominican Republic, the United Arab Emirates, and education of women in Africa. Additionally, we investigated the types of governments, cost of living, economic sectors, gross domestic product, infrastructure, poverty line, and further on in Burkina Faso, Uruguay, Morocco, Japan, and Peru.
The students considered the ways advancements in technology and automation impact the standard of living for individuals and society as a whole, how government policies such as taxation and social welfare programs affect a community's standard of living, in what ways cultural and societal values have an effect on what is considered a "good" standard of living, whether these values are universal across different communities and countries, to what extent the access to affordable housing impact a person's standard of living, how individuals and communities work to improve their own standard of living, and what role personal responsibility plays in achieving a higher quality of life.
In their teamwork, students planned their work, gathered relevant information, drew evidence to support analysis and research, analysed visuals, interpreted maps, made inferences, and presented and reflected on how they assisted in planning and carrying out the group's activity, communicated the plans to others, assumed a leadership role, and worked cooperatively with others.
Here are some photos to present their work and achievement:
Music
Written by Mr. Freddy
All the MYP Music students this month are busy preparing various ensembles both vocal and instrumental for the coming end-of-academic-year assembly which we call Recognition Day. There will be kolintang ensemble and choirs that will perform different styles of intercultural music. We also have many new talented singers that have developed their confidence and are ready to sing and showcase their talent at Recognition Day assembly. Band and Strings Club will also perform so we can see all the progress of our Music students in vocal and instrumental proficiency.
During class, the Grade 8 students also improved their creativity and composing skills. They were encouraged to work in groups to compose songs to support Ocean Awareness so they can learn that musical work can also be impactful to the world. Below are some videos of their creation:
Last week, some of Music students together with the ES students were also supporting our school open house program with impressive performances. Beside developing their confidence and performing skills, they also improve their sense of belonging to our beloved school by supporting the open house program.
Visual Arts
Written by Mr. Alan
In the second semester summative, Grade 7 students in Visual Art were creating their own style of self-portrait cubism on a sketchpad using their choice of dry mediums such as colored pencils, copic markers, crayons, or montage. Grade 8 students were creating their surrealism artwork on a canvas using wet mediums like acrylic paint. These two grade levels have been improving their creative and drawing skills.
Grade 9 students are currently working on their semester 2 examination, the initial IGCSE coursework component 1. They have chosen a word and are working across the coursework on A2-sized papers and a final artwork. This project gives them a preview of what to expect in the next academic year. Here are some snapshots of the works from Grades 7, 8, and 9.
Grade 7 - My Self Portrait Cubism
Grade 8 - My Surrealism Artwork
Grade 9 IGCSE Coursework Component 1
“SERENE”
“HOPE”
“END”
“BOWL”