PREP SCHOOL REVIEW - TERM 3 2018-19

In Term 3a, Year 3 studied the topic ‘Inspiring Inventors’, and learned about famous creators such as Leonardo Da Vinci.  Using his designs as inspiration they used their art and literacy skills to create their own inventions which might ‘change the world’. They also relished learning about ‘Chindogu’, or ‘unuseless’ Japanese inventions – creations that serve a purpose but often cause more problems! 

A real highlight of the term was the ‘Invention Arcade’. Computing lessons were spent creating algorithms for their own arcade machines and building them using recycled materials. It was great to see the enthusiasm and passion the children put into their models. 

Term 3b marked the beginning of the ‘Ancient City Adventure’ topic, where the children got the chance to visit Samut Prakan to learn about ancient temples and the history of Siam.   They used their experience back in class, by making their own temple sculptures in Art lessons. In Literacy they used their vivid imaginations to write their own adventure stories. 

Forces and magnets were the focus of Year 3 Science, carrying out fun experiments to identify which materials are magnetised.  Year 3 also worked with their friends from Year 2 to help prepare them for the classrooms, topics and teachers they will meet next year - they can’t wait to get started!.

-----------------------------

Term 3a saw Year 4 travel back thousands of years to explore the fascinating civilization of Ancient Egypt. A mini-tomb display in the corridor helped children visualise the inside of a pyramid, which inspired some wonderful, suspenseful stories during Literacy lessons. 

Working with our Artist in Residence the students printed some beautiful Egyptian themed artwork, which showcased all the skills they had learnt over the half term. Year 4 celebrated the end of the topic with Egyptian Day, enjoying activities such as building water lifting devices called shadufs, codebreaking hieroglyphs and mummifying a fish!

Year 4’s focus for term 3b was ‘Bright Sparks’ where they designed, built and tested electrical circuits using shaky hand-held loops. They also experienced a one night residential visit to the beautiful UNESCO World Heritage Site of Ayutthaya. As well as enjoying the beautiful temples and museums, they also took part in team building games and a quiz. Huge thanks to all the parents, children and adults involved in making the trip such a fabulous and rewarding experience.

------------------------------

What a jam-packed Term 3 it’s been for Year 5! 

As part of our Charity Enterprise topic they visited the Mercy Center to see the amazing work they do helping disadvantaged children in Bangkok. Feeling inspired, our students designed, made and sold products for their own Charity Enterprise.  This project allowed them to improve their teamwork, delegate responsibilities, conduct clever market research, calculate prospective profits, confidently present to potential investors and market and sell their goods to Years 3 and 4. 

Literacy lessons centred on ‘Clockwork’ by Phillip Pullman, which was a really challenging and thought provoking book! The story allowed students to explore different levels of formal language, create comic strips, practice complex sentence structures and use their drama skills to understand the characters’ motivations. Everyone has their own theory about the true intentions of Dr Kalmenius!

Position, movement and direction were a big focus in Maths lessons. Everyone is now confident in reflecting and translating shapes, and can measure degrees on compasses and clock faces.

A trip to the Apple Store in IconSiam with Digital Strategy Leader, Mr Knight ended the year on a high.  Students learned how to ‘jump cut’ videos in the style of filmmaker Zach King, to add magic and ‘pazzazz’ to their movie clips.

---------------------------------

During Term 3, Year 6 were preparing themselves for the ‘big move’ to year 7. Students were learning how to manage their time, the new challenges they will face, as well as the exciting opportunities they will have. Senior School departments have led fantastic transition sessions and have developed a good understanding of what life will be like in Year 7. The Learning Mentors, along with Mr Flavell (new Head of Year 7) have met the students, talked over their concerns and guided them about how to enjoy a successful Year 7.

The Senior School Science Department welcomed the students for two lessons, where they learned about lab safety, setting up investigation stations and carrying out their own experiments. They also experienced an incredibly exciting science assembly full of pops, bangs, whizzes and whooshes!

The Senior School Maths transition day allowed the students to meet their new teachers and 

experience some of the topics they will study next year. The students collaborated to crack codes, explore tangrams, construct cranes and deepen their understanding of the properties of 3D shapes. The day ended with a colossal Kahoot quiz in the Memorial Hall where the students were awarded prizes for their hard work – a mesmerizing mathematical day!

The Senior Art department hosted the students for two lessons to create some creative masterpieces. They used clay to make Stupas, using their new skills to make sure it would survive being fired in the school kiln. 

For the first time, our Computing team planned and led some activities for the Year 6 students in preparation for Year 7. The students used their excellent block-based coding skills to programme a robot to work its way around a tricky course without bumping into carefully positioned bricks, really impressing Mr. Lynn and the rest of the Computing Department.

During the Term 3 Graffiti Art topic Year 6 were visited by Bangkok’s famous graffiti artist – Alex Face. Alex met with the students to share his story, his artistic techniques, and to offer advice for their own designs. The students then worked with Alex to produce some incredible art themed around the United Nations Global Goal – Quality Education, which is displayed in the atrium.  Year 6’s own artwork was linked to Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, and is now displayed in the Year 6 corridor.